'Wounded child, wey no get any surviving family': Di pain orphans for Gaza dey go through

Medical pipo wey dey work for Gaza Strip dey use one specific phrase to describe one particular type of war victim.

"E get one acronym wey dey unique to di Gaza Strip, na WCNSF e mean wounded child, no surviving family - and dem dey use am frequently," na wetin Dr Tanya Haj-Hassan wey dey work wit Doctors Without Borders tell BBC News.

Di expression capture di horror of di situation for many Gazan children. Dia lives change in one second - dia parents, brothers and sisters, and grandparents die for di war and nothing go ever be di same again for dem.

Di war start afta Hamas attack Israel on 7 October 2023, wia dem kill 1,200 pipo and kidnap around 240 pipo wey make Israel to launch dia military campaign.

More dan 15,500 pipo don die for di katakata, wey include about 6,000 children, according to di health ministry wey Gaza and Hamas dey run.

Ahmed Shabat na one of those children wey dem bin describe as a wounded child, wey no get any surviving family, wen im land for one Indonesian Hospital in northern Gaza wit tears and injury . Di three-year-old survive one air strike for dia house for Beit Hanoun, in mid-November. But im father, mother and older brother dem die.

Miraculously, na only small-small wound im get. Later dem reveal say im younger brother Omar, wey dey two years also survive di strike.

Dem reunite dem after dem locate one adult member of dia wider family.

"After di bombing, dem tell us say one child dey di Indonesian hospital wit no-one wey accompany am, so we go dia quick quick"

Ahmed uncle Ibrahim Abu Amsha explain. "Ahmed bin dey wit a stranger. E tok say di bomb blow Ahmed into di air and dem see am wit injury about 20m (65ft) from di house."

Ahmed and Omar na orphans dem be now, dem dey homeless, wit no shelter to protect dem from continuous bombing, so Ibrahim decide to look afta dem, along wit im own family. Im initially carry dem go Sheikh Radwan city but im tok say dem comot from di place later.

"Pieces of glass from di explosion bin hit Ahmed"

From dia, dem go Nuseirat camp to stay for one school wey UN get hand inside. But even for dia new location, bomb still hit dem again, wit serious consequences for Ahmed.

"I run out of di school door and I see Ahmed for my front, im dey for ground, im two legs don comot. Im bin dey creep come meet me wit open arms, as im dey find help." One family member, wey bin dey wit Ahmed wen di blast happun die.

Ibrahim, wey still dey displaced wit im own family plus im sister children, say one of im dreams na to fit send Ahmed for treatment outside Gaza.

"Im bin wan become many tins," im sad uncle tok. "Wen we comot togeda to attend football matches, im tok say im go like become a famous football player.

Crying mum

Like Ahmed, Muna Alwan na war orphan too and dem also describe her as WCNSF wen she land for di Indonesian Hospital.

Di two-year-old dey cry evritime "Mama", but her mama don die.

Dem pull Muna from under di rubble afta one air strike hit dia neighbour house for di Jabal al-Rais area of northern Gaza. Muna parents, brother and grandfather die. Muna eye dey badly injured and her jaw dey fractured.

Dem transfer Muna to anoda hospital wia dem track her down wit her aunt Hanaa.

"Na through di internet we know say Muna dey for Nasser Hospital. We come here, and we recognise her," Hanaa explain.

But she say her niece dey suffer well well.

"She just wan scream, she dey always fear especially if pesin dey come near her," Hanaa add.

Muna get older sisters wey dey alive but dem dey for Gaza City.

"Dem hang for dia and no way to bring dem to di south," Hanaa tok, she add say "I dey ask myself evritime, wetin we go do? How we go take compensate for her mother?"

I lose my leg and family

Ontop one iron bed for di corner of one room for Nasser Hospital for Khan Yunis, southern Gaza, 11-year-old Dunya Abu Mehsen look wetin remain for her right leg wey dem wrap wit white bandages.

Di girl, wey get long curly hair, sitdown for di edge of di bed. She wear one velvet red dress, and she dey silent most of di time, she look like pesin wey no happy at all.

Dunya survive one air strike wit her brother, Yusuf, and her younger sister.

Di air strike hit wen all of dem bin dey sleep for dia home for al-Amal neighbourhood for Khan Yunis, southern Gaza.

But her parents, brother and sister die. She also lose her right leg.

"Wen I see my father, I bin dey fear sake of say blood and stones cover all im body. Pipo bin dey stand around us, and my sister bin dey scream" Dunya tori.

"I look myself and I no get leg. I feel pain and di only tin I bin dey tink na: 'How I take lose my leg?'"

"Dunya no remember how and wen she reach hospital, but she remember say she dey dia alone, and di medical staff dey ask her questions continuously as dem bin dey try to identify her family," her aunt Fadwa Abu Mehsen explain.

"She tell me say: 'I hear di nurse say, 'may God have mercy on dem'. I know say na my mama and papa she dey tok about."

Her aunt, wey sit down beside her for di hospital room wit di wheelchair, wey don become di only means for di little girl to go outside and breathe fresh air, say: "Di girl bin dey very playful, strong and very active before her injury."

Dunya say: "Today, I lose my leg and my family but I still get dreams. I want get a prosthetic (artificial) leg, travel, become doctor, and for dis war to end and our children to live in peace.'"

To know di exact number of orphaned children for di Gaza Strip dey challenging sake of di "serious hostilities and di situation on ground wey dey change anyhow and anytime", na wetin Ricardo Pires, di communication manager for di UN children fund Unicef.

Mr Pires add say di organisation try to reach hospitals and health staff for Gaza to identify and register children, but "di efforts dey very slow due to di extremely challenging conditions".

Im explain say no be say e dey "almost impossible" to identify safe, temporary care arrangements due to "chaotic and overcrowded" shelters and hospitals, but "di normal system to identify document, trace and reunite children wit dia relatives no dey work at all.