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With the beginning of each new year, most Palestinians in Gaza celebrate the passing of time. But the devastating Israeli war on GazaÌýsince 7 October 2023, deprived all Gazans the ability to celebrate for the second year in a row.

Mohammed Al-Nafar, 29-years-old, still remembers how Gaza's sky was decorated with fireworks to celebrate New Year's Eve, but now all he sees is clouds of smoke from Israeli airstrikes and the sound of Israeli warplanes.

Al-Nafar recalls how New Year's celebrations were in Gaza City, where he lived before becoming displaced in the city of Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip. He described toÌý°®Âþµº, "The celebrations were noisy in Unknown Soldier Street in the centre of Gaza City, which contains the oldest and largest park in the Strip and hundreds of shops that were frequented by residents from all cities."

"But this street, which was the jewel of civilization in Gaza, has now been transformed into great destruction. Israeli bulldozers have razed the park, turning it into ruins and great pain in the souls of Gazans," he added.

Al-Nafar hopes that 2025 will witness the end of this destructive war, and a new beginning for the residents of Gaza, who have not lost hope for a better life.

Children's drawings

In a small tent in the Nuseirat camp in the central Gaza Strip, children Basma, 12 years old, Omar, 9 years old, and Iman, 7 years old, were busy drawing with crayons scenes from the New Year's celebrations that remain in their memories.

Basma drew a Christmas tree decorated with many bright lights, and said to TNA,Ìý"My father used to buy new lights every year and put them on this tree. We used to gather around it in our living room and celebrate and dance."

While Omar drew a group of children launching fireworks into the sky, he said, "I used to go to the street in front of our house on New Year's with my friends and celebrate the arrival of the new year."

Their mother, Marah Al-Madhoun, told TNA, "For the second year in a row, we are welcoming the new year in tents as displaced persons, with widespread hunger and disease, and non-stop Israeli raids."

"What is the fault of those children that they should live through all this madness? And that they should be killed in these raids while they are asleep?" she rhetorically wondered.Ìý

Israel's war on GazaÌý in the deaths of more than 45,000 Palestinians, including more than 17,000 children.

The impossible cake

In a shelter for displaced people in the Mawasi area of Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip, Shireen Al-Baz, 32 years old, prepared a cake for her family to celebrate the new year.Ìý

The task of preparing this cake was extremely difficult for al-Baz due to the lack of basic materials.

"We suffer from a severe shortage of and the unavailability of eggs, which are essential materials for making a cake. I also made a great effort until I found some chocolate and candles to decorate the cake," she told TNA.

After al-Baz succeeded in making the cake that she used to make at the beginning of each new year for her children, she faced another challenge, which was the lack of an oven to bake the cake.

"I searched all over the shelter where I live for an oven, but I couldn't find one. After a lot of difficulty, I managed to get one in a public bakery, and I was able to bake the cake," she said.

"As mothers, we make great efforts and do the impossible in order to bring joy to the hearts of our families and children in the midst of this bloody war," al-Baz added.

No prayer for Christians

Adel Saba, 31, a young Christian man from Gaza City and the head of a family of four, refused to move south, insisting on staying in the city where he was born and raised.

Saba used to celebrate New Year’s Eve every year in Bethlehem South West Bank, where the Church of the Nativity is located, but for the second year in a row, the war has prevented him, like all Christians in Gaza, from travelling to practice religious rituals.

"Christians here, like Muslims, are subjected to constant bombardment and are deprived of everything, especially the right to life," he toldÌýTNA.

He explained that his family's home was largely destroyed, and they now live in the part that is still standing, with great difficulty in providing water and food.

The Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs in Gaza , in a statement issued on 5 October 2024, that the Israeli bombing caused severe damage to 3 churches in the Gaza Strip, the most important of which is the Church of Saint Porphyrius, or what is known locally as the Greek Orthodox Church, built in 406 AD and is considered one of the oldest churches in the world.

Saba hopes that 2025 will witness the end of this devastating war, and remarked, "We want this war to end, and to rebuild our beloved city, and the Christian presence will remain despite the wars and destruction."

Feelings of isolation and despair

Dr Dardah Al-Shaer, a psychological and social expert, confirms that the continuation of the war with the beginning of a new year for Palestinians in Gaza deepens their psychological crises and increases feelings of despair and loss.

Al-Shaer told TNA, "It is painful for a person to be deprived of his most basic rights to joy and hope."

"Every new year carries with it the symbolism of beginning and joy, but for the people of Gaza, the new year has become just an extension of an endless series of pain," he added.Ìý

Al-Shaer explained that the state of constant anxiety experienced by the population, whether due to bombing, loss of loved ones, or food insecurity, leads to the spread of severe depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, "and these conditions do not only affect adults, but also extend to children who grew up in an environment full of fear and deprivation."

He believed that celebrations of holidays and national or religious occasions were always an opportunity to strengthen the social fabric, "but with the absence of these opportunities due to the war, feelings of separation and disintegration are exacerbated."

"As 2025 approaches, Gazans live in a reality that resembles a large prison. While the world decorates its cities and celebrates the New Year, Gazans live under the rubble, struggling to secure a living or find shelter," he said.Ìý

Al-Shaer believes that the solution lies not only in ending the war, "but in providing an environment that guarantees psychological treatment and rebuilding society while providing opportunities. Gazans need a chance to heal, a chance to start a new, safe life like the rest of the world's people."