Exhibition focuses on Gaza's daily life

An exhibition titled We did what we could presented at Phare Citadelle in France highlights the daily life in Gaza amid ongoing bombings, forced displacements, and shortages. The exhibition, featuring photographs and testimonies from the Gaza Strip, relies on the work of Palestinian journalists and humanitarian workers present on the ground.

MSF and AFP contribute to the exhibition

The exhibition revisits the first two years of war through the perspective of Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) staff members and photographers from the Agence France-Presse (AFP). Among the contributors is Mohammed Abed, a Gaza-based photojournalist who has documented the activities of the NGO since 2019.

Exhibition shows the impact of war on civilians

MSF documents deadly attacks by the Israeli army through on-site photographs, some of which are several meters in length and width. The exhibition showcases images of residents fleeing bombings, the injured crowded into overcrowded hospitals, and children waiting for food, revealing the hell of life in Palestine between October 2023 and the start of the third ceasefire in October 2025.

Exhibition receives mixed responses

The exhibition, presented for the first time in Bayeux on the occasion of the Bayeux Calvados-Normandy Prize for War Correspondents, has since traveled to several French cities. In Toulouse, the city council had refused to host it, citing an "obvious risk of public order disturbance." A few months later, a private gallery opened its doors to the exhibition.

Exhibition promotes public engagement

Nicolas Beaudouin, in charge of events at MSF, noted that the initiative allows for exchanges with the public, with volunteers from MSF animating the exhibition and sharing experiences from their missions in Palestine and Gaza. MSF also highlights medical staff, sometimes targeted by attacks.

Gaza faces worsening humanitarian crisis

Since January 1, 2026, 37 humanitarian NGOs, including MSF, have been banned from entering Gaza by Israeli authorities. Gazans can only rely on local medical staff and equipment, as it is impossible to import operating tables, scalpels, or engine oil, according to Amande Bazerolle during an interview on France Inter.

Exhibition includes powerful imagery

Among the memorable images from the exhibition is a photograph of a large table bringing together Gazans in the middle of ruins, around a shared meal to break the fast.