Najla Shawa and her family are safe for now after fleeing their home in Gaza City, but she's worried she may never be able to return.
Shawa, a Gaza native who works for the international aid group Oxfam, is sheltering with her husband, two daughters and about 50 others at a compound in Zawaida, a community just south of the area Israeli forces ordered residents to evacuate before an anticipated ground offensive.
The adults are sleeping in shifts and the group is rationing food and water amid an Israeli siege that has blocked supplies from entering the Gaza Strip. But the compound has solar panels, so they have a few lights, internet service and are able to charge their phones.
Aid work has stopped as Shawa and her colleagues focus on their families.
"The worry is now sinking in, in a way that we need to be prepared for all scenarios," Shawa, Oxfam's Gaza-based country director, told The Associated Press in a video call. "There are no answers, really, because the destruction, the scale of destruction, that we have been seeing is terrifying."
"I was talking to someone (and they asked) why didn't you decide to stay? ... I'm in Gaza because I want to be in Gaza. I mean, in general, with my family. But at the same time, I'm going to see myself and my daughters hurt. So if there's any chance I can prevent that, I would."
About 500,000 people, almost a quarter of Gaza's population, are sheltering in U.N. schools and other facilities across the territory, according to the U.N. refugee agency. The Gaza Health Ministry said that 2,450 Palestinians have been killed and 9,200 others wounded during a week of Israeli airstrikes that have razed apartment buildings, offices and mosques.
Now that her family is safe, at least for the time being, Shawa is thinking of what comes next.
The events of the past week have reminded Palestinians of the hundreds of thousands of people who were forced from their homes and became refugees after the creation of Israel in 1948. Now some people are talking about Gaza residents being evacuated to the Sinai Desert in Egypt, she said.
"We don't want to be refugees again," Shawa said. "But to what extent can you bear the suffering, can you bear that possibility of even losing your life?"
But as a parent, Shawa is more worried about her children than her own safety.
"Losing our lives, it's OK, it's God's will," she said. "But the suffering, seeing our kids torn or severely injured, etc., not being able to treat them, to hospitalize them. It's really just beyond thinking."
It's been exactly three years since Canadian Michael Kovrig returned to Canada after spending 1,019 days in a Chinese prison. Now, he's publicly speaking out about his arrest and detainment for the first time.
Cineplex Inc. has been ordered to pay a record $38.9 million fine after the Competition Tribunal found the theatre owner guilty of deceptive marketing practices.
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Police say a toddler in Cambridge, Ont., who was reported missing early Monday morning, has since died.
Israeli strikes on Lebanon Monday killed more than 490 people, including more than 90 women and children, Lebanese authorities said, in the deadliest barrage since the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war.
On Sept. 20, Justice R.E. Nation of the Alberta Court of King's Bench found Craig McMorran guilty of fraud, money laundering and stealing a cottage from its rightful owners.
B.C.’s Civil Resolution Tribunal has ordered WestJet to refund a family in full for their diverted flight and compensate them for associated costs.
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A new analysis of dozens of arrowheads is helping researchers piece together a clearer portrait of the warriors who clashed on Europe’s oldest known battlefield 3,250 years ago.
On Sept. 20, Justice R.E. Nation of the Alberta Court of King's Bench found Craig McMorran guilty of fraud, money laundering and stealing a cottage from its rightful owners.
It's been exactly three years since Canadian Michael Kovrig returned to Canada after spending 1,019 days in a Chinese prison. Now, he's publicly speaking out about his arrest and detainment for the first time.
Ontario's police watchdog is investigating after a Durham officer discharged a Taser and an anti-riot weapon at a 15-year-old boy in north Oshawa on Sunday.
The City of Montreal has issued a lockdown notice for residents in the Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve borough due to smoke from a fire in a container storing 15,000 kilograms of lithium batteries in the Port of Montreal.
Authorities are investigating a report that violence erupted on a pickleball court in B.C.'s Lower Mainland over the weekend.
Police say a toddler in Cambridge, Ont., who was reported missing early Monday morning, has since died.
Malaysian police said Monday they have rescued 187 more children and raided locations nationwide linked to an Islamic business group that is being investigated for alleged sexual assault of children.
Israeli strikes on Lebanon Monday killed more than 490 people, including more than 90 women and children, Lebanese authorities said, in the deadliest barrage since the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war.
Japan’s meteorological agency on Tuesday issued a tsunami advisory to a group of remote islands south of Tokyo after a strong earthquake.
A mentally ill man who killed 10 people at a Colorado supermarket in 2021 was convicted Monday of murder and faces life in prison.
A Soyuz capsule carrying two Russians and one American from the International Space Station landed Monday in Kazakhstan, ending a record-breaking stay for the Russian pair.
The man accused in the apparent assassination attempt of Donald Trump at a golf course in Florida left behind a note saying that he intended to kill the former president and maintained in his car a handwritten list of dates and venues where Trump was to appear, the U.S. Justice Department said Monday.
Following another byelection loss in a riding long considered a Liberal stronghold, coupled with the news another minister is quitting cabinet — and opting to sit as an independent MP — the weekly panel of political strategists on CTV's Question Period weighs in on the Liberals' political fortunes.
Justin Trudeau will turn his focus to the ongoing crises in Haiti as he speaks with some world leaders Monday ahead of the 78th meeting of the United Nations General Assembly.
House of Commons Speaker Greg Fergus gave MPs a stern warning on Monday about improving their behaviour as they prepare for a fractious debate about whether the Liberals should continue to govern.
Private nursing agencies could cost Canadian health-care facilities approximately $1.5 billion in 2023-24, according to a new report commissioned by the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions.
While many Canadians no longer stress as much about COVID-19 as they did during its peak, health experts say a new variant has been spreading in some parts of the world and is now present in Canada.
There are 'no restrictions' on the right to receive health services in Quebec for English speakers, according to a new clarification document issued by the Quebec Health Ministry on Monday.
A new analysis of dozens of arrowheads is helping researchers piece together a clearer portrait of the warriors who clashed on Europe’s oldest known battlefield 3,250 years ago.
Finally, an emoji to represent us all is coming soon: An exhausted face with bags under its eyes.
A Soyuz capsule carrying two Russians and one American from the International Space Station landed Monday in Kazakhstan, ending a record-breaking stay for the Russian pair.
Beverly Glenn-Copeland says he's been diagnosed with dementia and will play his final concert tour dates over the next two weeks.
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The Juno Awards are casting a spotlight on Canadian-made South Asian music as part of broader changes to the annual celebration.
Cineplex Inc. has been ordered to pay a record $38.9 million fine after the Competition Tribunal found the theatre owner guilty of deceptive marketing practices.
B.C.’s Civil Resolution Tribunal has ordered WestJet to refund a family in full for their diverted flight and compensate them for associated costs.
Canadian natural gas prices slumped to their lowest level in more than two years on Monday and are expected to remain under pressure for weeks.
The City of Ottawa says it is recruiting a 'nightlife council' to aid the city's recently appointed nightlife commissioner.
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Surfer Mickey Brennan says he's 'amazed' to be alive after wiping out in a giant wave off Tasmania.
The Toronto Raptors are planning to retire Vince Carter's jersey next month, sources tell TSN.
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B.C.’s Civil Resolution Tribunal has ordered WestJet to refund a family in full for their diverted flight and compensate them for associated costs.
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Ontario Premier Doug Ford says the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) should investigate how some students on a recent school field trip ended up at a rally where pro-Palestinian slogans were shouted.
A Toronto rapper who was charged in a fatal 2021 shooting has been released after a judge dismissed social media evidence in the case.
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The City of Calgary has opened applications to design its permanent residential school memorial and the winning plan will be chosen in mid-2025.
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The Canada Revenue Agency has provided new data on the number of employees who were found to have received the Canada Emergency Response Benefit during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The City of Ottawa says it is recruiting a 'nightlife council' to aid the city's recently appointed nightlife commissioner.
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Matt Coronato scored twice and Jonathan Huberdeau assisted on three goals as the Calgary Flames beat the host Edmonton Oilers 6-3 in one of two split-squad games between the provincial rivals on Monday night.
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Three people were killed Monday morning in a crash north of Wellesley.
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Residents at a Kitchener townhouse complex still haven’t been able to return to their homes, even though it's been 11 months since a fire at a neighbouring unit.
The Saskatchewan Government is fighting to have a Court of King's Bench decision reversed. A decision which would allow a constitutional challenge of its Parents' Bill of Rights.
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The Saskatchewan Ministry of Education says a woman facing an assault charge is no longer working at a private Christian school where the alleged incident took place.
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Sara Cunningham, the first woman to lead the Greater Sudbury Police Service, has been a police officer since she was 21.
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519 Meets organized a car rally in south London on Saturday in a Value Village parking lot, and it turned out to be their largest ever.
In early August, Gord Leaman proudly put up a billboard on his front lawn that says 'Screw Trudeau, Screw Singh, Capitalism not Socialism, and White Lives Matter.'
Casino Rama announced three new performances will hit the stage this winter.
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A Brampton man faces charges after police say a dispute over an unpaid bill at Blue Mountain Resort turned into a confrontation.
The Windsor Spitfires are set to get back on the ice for the 2024/2025 season, but not before warning fans of scam artists looking to pull a fast one.
Following the discovery of a potential petroleum well found in downtown Wheatley, the Municipality of Chatham-Kent is holding a community open house on Tuesday afternoon.
On Monday, most Windsor city councillors voted against a motion to cancel the development at 3930 and 3950 Sixth Concession Road, allowing the 24-unit townhouse project to proceed.
B.C.’s Civil Resolution Tribunal has ordered WestJet to refund a family in full for their diverted flight and compensate them for associated costs.
BC Conservative leader John Rustad dropped a major policy plan Sunday, pledging to eliminate supervised drug consumption sites across B.C. and replace them with intake centres for treatment and recovery.
Mounties are asking witnesses to come forward after a woman was struck by a vehicle and seriously injured in a crosswalk in Nanaimo, B.C.
A pair of runaway pigs are in the custody of an animal sanctuary in the Okanagan after evading police and volunteers for hours earlier this week.
The Red Bridge, a historic landmark in Kamloops, B.C., was completely destroyed by fire early Thursday morning.
Animal protection officers in British Columbia have rescued three pit bulls – including one that gave birth to 10 puppies – from a rat-infested home in Kelowna.
Farmers in southern Alberta are working to wrap up harvest, with 80 per cent of major crops in the bin, according to the province's latest crop report.
Monday marked the official start of Reconciliation Week in Lethbridge.
A Medicine Hat man faces charges after police say they found him in possession of drugs and a .22-calibre pen gun.
After playing the lottery for more than 40 years, a Greater Sudbury woman made a huge windfall playing a scratch ticket game.
A family dispute related to a property matter turned ugly over the weekend when a 71-year-old hit their head on the pavement after being pushed.
Police in Sault Ste. Marie charged a 36-year-old suspect with drug trafficking and other charges following a weekend raid of a residence on Robin Street.
Newfoundland and Labrador sponsored a minor football team in England, now they’re about to play one of the biggest clubs in European soccer.
Newfoundland and Labrador's chief medical officer is monitoring the rise of whooping cough infections across the province as cases of the highly contagious disease continue to grow across Canada.
A 16-year-old biennial event aimed at fostering business in the country's eastern Arctic and northern regions has been cancelled indefinitely as a dispute unfolds between Inuit in Canada and a Labrador group claiming to share their heritage.
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