PALESTINIAN teenager Maisa al-Ghandour had big dreams of becoming a doctor or teacher until she was blinded almost two weeks ago in an Israeli strike in war-ravaged Gaza.
"Now, I wish to die. We are not living a life in Gaza anymore; we are just hoping to die, our lives have become death," said Maisa, aged 14.
Maisa was wounded in an Israeli artillery strike at Eilabun High School in Al-Karara town, east of Gaza's Khan Younis city, on July 26, the family said.
"There are shrapnel fragments in our chests, abdomens, and faces," Maisa said, referring to wounds also suffered by sister Yara, 9, and brother Mohammed, 11.
"I hope we can go outside (of Gaza) to receive treatment because there are no medicines here."
The family had taken shelter in the school after being displaced several times during Israel's 10-month-old offensive, which has killed about 39,600 Palestinians and wounded 91,535, according to Gaza health authorities.
Israel's campaign was triggered by an Oct. 7 cross-border raid led by Palestinian militant group Hamas in which some 1,200 Israelis and foreigners were killed and more than 250 taken hostage, according to Israeli tallies.
The day of the attack in Al-Karara started with some semblance of normality, the family said.
"We were good and beautiful, we started to play with our friends, we went there and stayed at the school.
"They (Israeli) have thrown two missiles on us, and we became like this," said Yara, who lost the sight in one eye in the attack.
Israel says it goes to great lengths to avoid hitting civilians. It says Hamas uses Gaza's civilians as human shields by operating within densely populated areas, humanitarian zones, schools and hospitals, which Hamas denies.
The girls' mother, Ola al-Ghandour, sat beside Maisa as she cried.
She held up a photograph on her phone of Maisa before the injuries. Her deaf son, Mohammed, sustained a head wound.
"I hope Maisa can regain her beauty; now she is disfigured and has lost her vision in both eyes. Yara has also lost her vision. They are both completely disfigured and have lost their beauty," she said.
Aside from bombardment, Palestinians face a humanitarian crisis with severe shortages of food, water, electricity and medicine in one of the most densely populated places on earth.
Mediators from Qatar, Egypt and the United States have failed repeatedly to ease the bloodshed, as the conflict keeps tensions on the boil around the Middle East.
At Gaza's Nasser Hospital, nurse Makram Awad recalled the Ghandour family's desperation when they arrived for treatment.
"Two days ago, the parents of these children came and asked for help, saying that worms were coming out of their children's heads. We did what we could with the limited medical supplies we have," said Awad.
"There are no bandages, plasters, or even the minimum medical supplies. I'm saying that worms came out of a child's head while he was alive and injured."
Awad urged "everyone with a sense of responsibility" to aid Gaza hospitals so they can provide a minimum level of treatment.
* The writer is from Reuters