'Don't Know How I Made It Out Alive': Gaza Journalist Documents Evacuation Amid Airstrikes

A journalist in Gaza City recorded her evacuation from an apartment building on the night of October 9, the same day she shared footage of herself experiencing explosions nearby.

In this footage, Plestia Alaqad is initially seen documenting the damage outside her apartment, as Israeli officials ordered a complete siege of the region on Monday.

Alaqad is then seen sheltering at her neighbor’s home that evening. “We literally don’t know what’s happening in the world. Here we’re just listening to bombs. No one knows anything,” Alaqad says.

The journalist then recorded her evacuation from the area, explaining on Instagram that “the Israeli forces suddenly bombed an apartment in my building” and that “the Palestinian Civil Defense came to rescue” those still inside.

“I still don’t know how I made it out alive,” Alaqad said.

The following day, Alaqad shared footage of her apartment and neighborhood following the strikes. “Fortunately the situation is better than what we expected as we were expecting the worse,” she said. Credit: Plestia Alaqad via Storyful

Video transcript

PLESTIA ALAQAD: So it's around 12:00 PM right now. Still no electricity, no internet. My battery is at 2%. My parents are still asleep. So yeah, that's the update for now.

They bombed really close to my house. That's my window right now. [GASPS] That's the view. [GASPS]

- MDA!

PLESTIA ALAQAD: People in the street are calling for ambulance, but there is no ambulance.

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

Here is the window. Yeah, and literally the whole window is down.

[AIRPLANES FLYING OVERHEAD]

We can hear the sound of airplanes.

[INAUDIBLE] at our neighbor's house. No internet, no electricity until now. It's around 7:00 PM.

We literally don't know what's happening in the world. Here, we're just listening to bombs. No one knows anything, literally.

We're evacuating right now.

[INAUDIBLE]

- Oh, my god.

PLESTIA ALAQAD: I feel [INAUDIBLE]. I finish it. Good luck.

[YELLING]

I don't know this [INAUDIBLE]. We're just walking.

That house is basically burning behind my back.