Bengaluru: Amid thousands of bomb blasts across Gaza, three sisters of the Missionaries of Charity are carrying out their duty without fear in their chapel premises. It has been more than 40 days since the aerial bombardment began on October 7, yet the sisters are standing firm and determined not to give up on their 60 disabled wards, some of whom are young, some old.
The horrors of war are indescribable – constant bombings, explosions reaching 200 decibels, tremors on the ground and extreme fear. The sisters embrace the trembling children, most of whom are either physically or mentally disabled, holding them until they calm down.
One man, who spoke on condition of anonymity for security reasons, recalled the horror, saying lack of food and water was adding to their misery. “One day, the sisters had only one loaf of bread which they shared and the next day, it was only an orange,” he said. This is because the food is first given to prisoners and asylum seekers.
“There are about 700 people sheltering inside the compound, where there is a church,” the man said, recalling the uncertainty of life in Gaza. “A woman who was seeking shelter inside the premises for several days wanted to come out and go home to take a bath. “As soon as she came out of the campus, a sniper shot her, injuring her and ultimately succumbing to her injuries a few days ago.”
“The complex is located near al-Shifa hospital, which was bombed by Israel a few days ago, claiming that Hamas had stored weapons under the hospital and was operating from beneath it. The entire hospital and the tunnel system below have been taken over by Israeli forces. Communication from outside has been cut off. Sometimes, their landline beeps to life. The source said, “I got this news from the sisters living in Jerusalem.”
“The convent has three sisters and 60 inmates – handicapped and mentally challenged children, and old people with wounds lying in bed. They do not have food, water, medicine, electricity or LPG. Sometimes generous and courageous people bring them something to eat. Whatever is available from outside is first served to the prisoners. For the sisters, it is sometimes just one meal a day.”