The first day of Ramazan came and went in Gaza, with residents marking a joyless iftar against a backdrop of famine, disease and displacement as the conflict in the besieged territory ground on more than five months after it began.

As the Muslim world welcomed the start of the holy month on Monday, Gazans faced continued Israeli bombardments and a spiralling humanitarian crisis, AFP reports.

In Gaza’s southern border city of Rafah, where 1.5 million people have sought refuge, the usual generous iftar meal marking the end of the day’s fast was replaced by “canned food and beans”, said displaced Khan Younis resident Mohammad al-Masry.

“We didn’t prepare anything. What do displaced people have?” al-Masry said. “We don’t feel the joy of Ramazan… Look at the people staying in tents in the cold.”

Om Muhammad Abu Matar, also displaced from Khan Younis, told AFP that this year, Ramazan had “the taste of blood and misery, separation and oppression”.