Gaza / PNN / Report by Israa Al-Balawi

GAZA – “I wake up to find my clothes, bedding, and blankets soaked in blood. I have to clean it all in front of my children. Once, I even had to dig a small hole inside the tent to bury blood clots.” These harrowing words come from a Palestinian woman displaced by the Israeli war that erupted on October 7, 2023.

Her story is just one of countless accounts reflecting the dire realities faced by displaced Palestinian women. Hundreds of thousands are living in tents with no access to basic necessities, hygiene, or privacy. For many, menstruation has become a profound source of anguish.

In addition to relying on rudimentary public or makeshift sandy toilets, these women face an uphill battle to access sanitary pads, which have become prohibitively expensive.

This report sheds light on the struggles of Palestinian women during menstruation amidst displacement and the violations of their privacy in the camps.

Tattered Clothes as Sanitary Pads

With swollen eyes, Taghreed Ahmed, 42, sits outside her tent in Deir al-Balah’s Al-Birka area, soaking up what little warmth the morning sun offers. She recounts a difficult night marked by severe menstrual cramps, exacerbated by a uterine condition she had been treating before the war.

“I can’t describe the misery in this tent. Surrounded by my three children, I wake up to find my clothes and bedding soaked in blood, and I have to clean everything in front of them,” she says.

Taghreed’s home in Gaza City’s Safatawi neighborhood was destroyed in an airstrike early in the war. Her nine-year-old son Hamza and his grandmother were killed, and Taghreed, along with other family members, was injured.

Her menstrual symptoms, worsened by grief, have become more severe due to the lack of medical care and the unavailability of medicines that once eased her condition.

With sanitary pads scarce and exorbitantly priced, Taghreed has resorted to using old clothes as substitutes. “I was desperate—like a madwoman—searching for worn-out clothes to use. I usually need four packs of pads per cycle, but a single pack now costs 35 shekels, and my husband is unemployed,” she laments.

In some instances, she has been forced to bury blood clots in small pits inside her tent. “When there was only one shared bathroom for the whole camp, I had no choice but to do this in my tent. I wished the ground would swallow me whole to escape this humiliation.”

A Monthly Nightmare

For Sabrine, 32, who suffers from lupus and blood clotting disorders, menstruation is a nightmare. Her challenges have only intensified since being displaced from Beach Camp to Rafah, Khan Younis, and finally a cramped shelter in Nuseirat.

The pain caused by her medical condition is exacerbated during her period, as she is on blood-thinning medication. “I constantly check my clothes and the seat beneath me for stains, fearing embarrassment in front of family members,” she says.

Like many others, Sabrine struggles to find sanitary pads. “When I was displaced in Rafah, charities provided some supplies, but after the area was overrun, even that stopped. I’ve had to rely on relatives for help.”

Water scarcity worsens her ordeal. “My husband hauls water daily, and I try to conserve as much as I can because he has a herniated disc,” Sabrine explains. “During my period, I spend hours cleaning myself, my clothes, and the bathroom. Every few minutes, someone bangs on the bathroom door, which is especially embarrassing when it’s a male relative.”

Disposing of used sanitary pads is another challenge, as plastic bags for rubbish are unavailable. Sabrine’s husband frequently takes on the task of discarding them at a nearby garbage dump.

Giving Birth in a Tent

In a plastic-sheet tent at Jafra Camp in central Gaza, Ahed Rizq, 24, lives with her husband and mother-in-law. The harsh conditions have taken a toll on both her health and her newborn.

“When I found out I was pregnant, I was terrified. I worried about giving birth in the tent and how I would protect my baby from the cold and other hardships,” Ahed recalls.

During her pregnancy, Ahed endured stifling summer heat, often cooking at sunset to avoid the sweltering temperatures inside the tent. Malnutrition plagued her throughout, but she managed to deliver safely.

Returning to the tent with her baby was a harsh reality. “I needed to bathe after giving birth, but the camp’s shared bathroom is five metres away. Every trip to the bathroom at night, wrapped in layers to protect against the cold, felt like a battle,” she says.

To maintain her privacy, Ahed washes her undergarments in the cramped, makeshift bathroom. “Washing in cold water has made me sick multiple times, which has affected my ability to care for my baby,” she says.

Ahed returned from the hospital with a hygiene kit from a charity, which included sanitary pads. But once the supplies ran out, she struggled to purchase more, given their high cost.

“The pads available are expensive and low-quality. My husband has to scour the market to find ones that suit me,” she says.