I found it impossible to take my eyes off Najwaen Rabi Ahmed Sultan's face. Not only because of her beauty, but also because of the strength that seemed to emanate from within her.
She and her family had fled from their home as the Israeli tanks devastated Beit Lahiya and spent weeks moving between shelters set up in various local school buildings. The indignities faced by her sisters and her mother left a deep impression on her.
I come from a cultured, educated family she fumed - a family of traditions and history. But for weeks we suffered like animals, dependent on others and at the mercy of the whims and taunts of rude and callous aid agency staff.
She held herself upright, looked me straight in the eyes It was too much to bear - to be able to do nothing, to watch my mother plead and beg for our food, blankets or a place to wash.. No child should ever have to see that.