Eyewitness account of a Gazan boy

Saleem Abdulla, aged six, is in the first grade at Rimal school, Gaza.

I finished the exam at around 10 a.m. in the morning [on Saturday] and I started to go out from my classroom when suddenly I heard a large explosion near my school. I started to be really scared. My classroom is on the second floor so I was afraid to get to the stairs until a teacher came and took us to the ground floor. Usually my mum comes to pick me up or sends me a taxi. I found no taxi so I stayed at the gate of the school just hearing explosions and people running.

I felt that I could do nothing but stand. I kept waiting for a while — I don’t know how long for. I found my mum running to the school to pick me up. We walked home — maybe about 2.5 km.

I started to hear explosions from right and left and was really scared. Mum tried to ask me how I did during the exam, but I forgot everything. I was just looking around looking at the flames and smoke on the buildings.

Now I hate going to school. I threw my bag in the bathroom with my books because I don’t want to see it.

I don’t want to go back to the school ever. I don’t know what is happening and why this is happening. I feel really cold as my mother and father keep opening the windows so the windows don’t smash with the bombs. I keep sneezing all day. When I ask my mother to close the window, they say it’s for my own benefit. I have no electricity for three days. We have no milk, and no dairy products. Other food is here for the moment — we have vegetables, but we can’t get fruit any more, just a type of orange. Just tell me why and what for.

— © Guardian Newspapers Limited, 2009