LOS ANGELES — As Israel continues to bomb the Gaza Strip in response to Hamas’ Oct. 7 terrorist attacks, Palestinian Americans are concerned that their loved ones will become collateral damage.

According to independent, nonprofit organization Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor, as of Oct. 19, more than 3,400 Palestinian civilians had been killed since Oct. 7. That figure included more than 1,400 children and 800 women. 

Emily Debinie is one of the many Palestinian Americans living in Los Angeles. She has been trying to stay in contact with her cousin in Gaza, whose husband and three children are also fearing for their lives. 

“Every night, we are just looking for her little interactions with the family group. Just this morning, I saw a little thumbs up from her, so we know she’s still alive,” Debinie said. 

Israel’s siege has made internet and electricity hard to access in Gaza, so when Debinie cannot get through to her cousin, she turns to the news. And often, the latest reports only deepen her despair. Debinie’s cousin had to evacuate the neighborhood in northern Gaza where her husband’s family had lived for centuries. Debinie said they are now hunkering down in a small space, sleeping on the floor with 50 other people. And though they have so far managed to stay alive, Debinie said many people close to them have been killed. 

“My cousin had to tell her daughter that her best friend died under a building,” Debinie said. 

According to Middle East expert and visiting professor at USC, Benjamin Radd, conditions on the ground for those still alive in Gaza are dire.  

“The civilian infrastructure that you need to sustain life, everything from sanitation, clean water, heating, electricity, all of this is, at best, sporadic, realistically non-existent,” Radd said. 

Radd said those conditions will only get worse if Israel launches a ground invasion into Gaza, which he said is almost inevitable at this point if Israel is to achieve its stated goal of eradicating Hamas. 

“There’s going to be urban combat, which is never good for either side,” Radd said. 

Palestinian Americans like Debinie are dreading that kind of ground invasion and are pleading that the bloodshed come to an end.

“There’s a lot of families there that have nothing to do with politics, the families that I know, they’re just trying to survive in the churches, hiding. They just keep lighting candles and praying for peace,” Debinie said. 

After our interview, Debinie learned her cousin’s in laws were killed by an Israeli airstrike while they were sheltering inside one of those churches.

Debinie said that in these dark times, she will continue to pray for the safety and well-being of her family in Gaza.