if you are still carious about knowing how does it feel when someone knows that his house will be bombed and he has to evacuate within 10 minutes read the below heartbreaking storytelling by د. وليد موسى who was living in the Italian Tower Building.... Last 10 Minutes Standing!! “Trrrrrrnnn…Aloooo? (The Guard of my building calling)…Aloooo….calling my mobile.. ..Without any introduction, the Guard of the building shouted: “Dr. Walid….. get downstairs with your family immediately? “ What…silence….trying to understand! What is going on? Who is that? What is this? What is wrong? . “No time..to speak more” shouted the guard, “just get down with your family dr. Walid”…”the Israelis army are going to bomb the building right now… the people of the tower are all down stairs running, you don’t have time…may be 10 minutes”…what..is this? He must not be serious…is this the last remaining 10 minutes in my life? In my house? In My family life? My children’s lives? What if they did not respect the time left of 10 minutes? Who can guarantee that we have 10 minutes to leave our apartments..it happens and they might not respect their words….how can one gathers and packs up our memories..our life and run? Holding the mobile in my hand, about to crash it, before I woke up shouting at my family to get down..The Guard closed the call, may be to cal another family most likely..without any answer from my side… 9 minutes remained……..Trnnn…trnnnnn, my mobile ringed..mostly someone to warn me agai..They are casting alive the Tower in the TV…All Gazans ..all the word are about to see this massacre life..denial again..this is not happening to me!! Must be a Joke..very bad jok! But the shouting and voice of people running arround..telling it is trurth,..and it is happening to me…It is the 10 minutes..what I can do in 10 munities Shayse..(if they are really 10 minutes).. looking around..where am I.?.where are my children? First thought…Shouting and calling at my wife and kids to gather in the living room.. My goodness…looking around for the last minutes to my house..I have just finished renovations..not yet enjoyed last improvements and renocations..sad my family..this is our destiny..to keep and start working form zero..… How I can take my house with me and run in 10 minutes? Called my wife shouting very loudly. “it is the time..down stairs..hurry upppp” …I opened the door of the apartment, tens of people are running down in the stair cases, children..old women, men..shouting …crying… running? Where are my children..I called my wife again? ..It is true..still don’t believe it…it is true ..people are evacuating the building!..no doubt.....we should run…Shouting while running back to my apartment…Looking at my wife face…She is completely panic…” No Time..Hurry ..get the children down stairs”..Children heard the voices..they entered our bedroom running..panic …their faces telling me the story again ..they knew…it is the question of life and death again..The children know this..they warning me to hurry.pletely panic…”Let us goo..go.goo.” children crying.. “what is going on Papa”…no time to explain, how I can explain this to my innocent daughters and son? “ Where to go Papa”…I don’t know..we just need to move..How I can explain ..children are aware and the know better than we know.. “don’t do anything just go wait for me and your mother inform of the apartment..don’t move till I come, will bring some papers, my ID and Laptop..wait there, we will go together downstairs, OK? “..Hisham my Son came and asked me to carry another hand bag, he thought it carries important papers or so… 6minutes remained……..Trnnn…trnnnnn ….. …trrrnnnn…trnnnn.. Why time passing so quickly…it is a matter of life and death, and time should stop here…it is not fair..but will we survive this… Where are you Am Hisham?…I shouted at my wife, I gathered the kids and put them in front of the door…”huryyyyyyyy..I don’t believe it is 10 minutes..they might start bombing right now….?”… Take this file with you ..my wife said? What is inside…Just hurry?” It includes all of our papers and certificates… “Glad you did this 2 days ago”..hurry…”Where are the kids?”..” must be waiting for us in front of the apartment door”, my wife just dressed what she can. We run to the door… Where are the kids, I left them right here? “They might run down stairs accompanying the people running down, don’t panic, we will find them downstairs” “ Neighbors must had took kids with them while running down? I called again shouting and calling my kids....are they still inside? I called them name by name? Ahed! ( she is 10 years old),…. Hisham (he is 8 years old),…… Maysae, (she is 7 years old), …..Nadin the youngest, she is 5 years old..My wife is pregnant in 6 months…pray she will manage to run down…no sound in the house, “they must have left down stairs…”..I said 4minutes remained……..Trnnn ….trrrnnnnnn I closed the door, carrying the file that my wife gave me, my laptop and my mobile. My Mobile that kept ringing..trnnnnnnn…trnnnnn…making me very nervous..warning me to run…to run…and to run…friends and neighbors must be calling….People might still want to worn me…Got it… I am trying to get down.. shouting “where are you kids? Are you ahead of us Downstairs .?” I told my wife.. “don’t worry, we will found them sown waiting for us?” while running down..I was knocking the doors of my neighbors apartments, just in case if they were not informed…make sure they are down..all apartments on my way were empty…they must have been informed ahead of us....kept knocking loudly all the doors during my way down..”Are you seeing the kids?” I asked my wife when we reached downstairs the lobby of the building…” Ahed,…Hisham..Mayse…Nadinn..Hisham,,,Hishammm…” my wife was calling and shouting while running down….I Was preparing to get up to search for then the entire building if could not find my children down? Hishamm..Ahedddd?? 2 Minutes remained…we reached the entrance hall…finally Kids are there looking to the staircase exit ..crying and waiting expecting us to come any time…. My mobile kept ringing..making me very ..very nervous again again…switched it off…I saw all the family together finally in the lobby with tens of people and children heading to the exits of the building…shouting …crying..it was crazy moments..peolpe asking “ did yous see my mother…did you see my kid…did you see my husband…did you see…did you seeeee…” ..This should be a nightmare..or … scene in a scary movie… this must not be part of reality..denial started to prevail…this is not happening to me..not happening to my family..this is not happening at all and we will wake up after few moments…this should be not true… I shouted at my family Go ahead and wait for me in the street corner nearby the building…, I will have to bring the car…I said..and moved quickly without looking to any thing nor waiting to my wife response..kept going downstairs to the basement to the Garage …I heard My wife criying and shouting at me not to go? And leave the car? “ They will start striking now, please don’t go” ..I just Shouted without looking. “just go..no time..take care of the kids..will be outside in seconds…just goo..gooo”. I knew..I can’t run anymore anyhow, I feel a huge pain in my foot…my right foot...couple of years ago, I lost 2 fingers in a surgery operation..cant physically run because of my foot problem..If I want to survive this, I will have to use the car..I don’t have other option..the car is just few meters down in the basement..I insisted..The guard accompanied me in brave move of him moving and running to the opposite the waves of people who are running out of the exit..He knew that I can’t make alone…because of my leg problem.. I can’t remember how I reached the car..I switched it on…did it work from the first time, or? I don’t know? Is it working? also I don’t know..I don’t hear the voice of the engine moving; Will the car move? Bad timer to breakdown I was thinking..this what happens always in nightmares..your legs become heavy..cars don’t move..and you stuck…thank God this is not happening..they are just thoughts in my head..I am tired but will have to go and keep surviving this!…tens of cars ahead before I can reach the basement exists.. “I will have to calm down, if I wanted to make it”..I told myself..otherwise, I will crash all of the cars before I reached the exists..I took big breath..switched on the car again... I still have few minutes..(Time must have stopped)...Lied on myself..10 minutes still 10 minutes..who is counting anyhow?..who cares..what is the hill is this…will I be able to see my family and children again? Will I be stuck in the basement..what a crazy decision I made…I was Staring at the exits..it is far..in normal situation, it takes me seconds to get out ....is this the voice of the bombs reaching our building..don’t know..shouting at the guard…while staring at the exit door...”open the garage door..open it quickly..”..don’t have time..we run out of time…the guard struggling to open the door…God damt ..bad timing to have the door stuck....open..open it..hurry..He finally opened the door.”.Did they started bombing the building? What are those voives..?..what these voices around..cracks? hundreds of people running ahead of me.. My Goodness..where is my family among this huge crowd, was thinking..took another big breath..people moving scary and panic around me..their eyes don’t belong to them..all looking and staring at the sky awaiting for the F 16 or plains without pilots to start striking the building any moment…one shouted from the crowd… “People! calm down…The Israeli provided another 10 minutes”..10 Minutes again..who is counting? What the hill , how these people know about this?..who told him this?..I was told later that Israelis army contacted 2 HHs in the building..2 HHs to inform and warn 50 HHs in the building and in just 10 ms or even 20 minutes..is this the hill? No doubt yes..It is the hill, as I told you Am Hisham I was shouting from the car window searching around while trying to move very slowly inside the crowd and away from the crowd and people, afraid of switching the light of the car…”Papa....my child Hisham was knocking on the car from behind…what is going on? Suddenly saw my child.”.get in..where is your mum and sisters?”..”Mama is Ok, she sent me to call you when she saw the car” .. we are all together now in the last 10 crazy minutes ..the six of us”..I took a deep breath and started heading moving with the crowd towards the nearby hospital, as a temporary shelter..to follow and keep watching the remaining parts of this drama…. Few minutes later..the planes started striking the building..just after 30 minutes of the first warning… shelling 11 rockets to the building, it was completely destroyed , 20 people were injured around, though all left the place....God saved lives of more than 500 people…500 civilians living in the building. The hospital became our temporary shelter..located less than 100 meters away from the building From the hospital, my wife, my four children and myself kept looking to the building and waiting..are these the last minutes of the building standing… The rockets came afterwards killing our dreams and burying our homes and memories.. My middle daughter the most innocent while looking to the burnt building 100 meters away in our shelter.. I could not bring my toy box..Papa..I tried to carry , but it was heavy …… “Don’t worry daughter, promise you to buy you a new bigger and much nicer one” My daughter meant for the cartoon box that includes all of her toys and games..the ones that I brought her just 2 weeks before this tragedy occurred and after my children and family survived a car accident with minor and moderate injuries during this crazy war, close to a mosque that was shelled (another story with another 10 minutes in this crazy life..not sure but might narrate this tale later…) At the end, I believe we will not give up..I will keep teaching my children..not to ever give up..we will keep surviving..being a Gazan means that you will need to learn how to survive ever..” We will restore back our memories..they are not buried..they live with us”…” We will build our home… back.. I promise. We will keep surviving” ...Do I feel better after I narrated this painful moments and after writing those words down..not sure..may be yes!…Will I feel more better if I shared with all of you those crazy 10 minutes? Not sure..but maybe yes....at least..I tried..and I will keep trying…..Send.. Many Thanks A survivor speaking on behalf of thousands of Gaza families…on behalf of fathers who might had experienced the same as I, or even worse.
Posted on: Sun, 28 Sep 2014 12:29:20 +0000