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Gaza survivors are re-arrested – again – after invading Israel | Gaza News

Gaza City – Over the past 12 years the people of Gaza have endured four vicious persecutions in Israel and after recently, many Palestinians are being forced to rebuild their homes that were destroyed.

The 11-day Israeli bombing in May destroyed 1,148 homes and shops and destroyed 15,000 others, leaving 100,000 civilians displaced in United Nations-run schools and elsewhere.

For many survivors, this is not the first time that they have been forced to look for temporary accommodation while facing the prospect of expensive reconstruction.

Ramez al-Masri, 39, lost his two-story house in a second flash in May, leaving his family homeless. His house was first bombed during the 2014 Israeli war in Gaza.

On May 14 at around 3am, one of al-Masri’s neighbors received a phone call from Israeli forces ordering everyone in the area to leave because weather planes were approaching.

“Late in the afternoon, my neighbor called me to tell me the warning,” Al-Masri said. “Before moving, I ran to my room to retrieve our briefcase [vital] goods. Sadly, we had to flee to a nearby hospital for safety. We stayed there until dawn. ”

The remains of two al-Masri homes after being hit by Israeli eagles [Ahmed al-Sharateha/Al Jazeera]

‘Destruction’

During the 11 years of brutal beatings in Israel, al-Masri’s family later hid in the home of a relative. The end of the war began on May 21, and they returned to their homes, only to be reduced to rubble because of the broken pipes below.

“When I found out that my house was completely destroyed. I rented a house for my family, including my wife and six children, for $ 200. It has only two rooms, one for me and my wife and one for all my children, ”he said.

Al-Masri’s house was demolished earlier in the 2014 war when Israeli forces occupied the northern region of Gaza, and the area was constantly bombarded, leaving 140,000 homes destroyed.

The building was rebuilt three years later and his family moved in 2017. “Will my house, which was also demolished, take another three years to be rebuilt? Will I be homeless by 2024? ”

Al-Masri said he feared returning to the “movement”, small metal houses scattered over the rubble, where he lived for three years before his house was rebuilt. He will not be able to afford expensive rent as a vegetable seller for a fee that he will not be able to take care of his family on time.

“Living in a summer travel agency is unbearable [because of the heat], “He said, adding that he hoped that foreign powers would help him and other homeless Palestinians to rebuild quickly.

Ramez al-Masri stands in front of his two-story building demolished by Israeli protests again [Courtesy: Ramez al-Masri]

Homeless for the third time

While the devastation of the strike is painful for the Palestinian people, the population is even greater.

In May, at least 256 people, including 66 children and 40 women, were killed in Israeli airstrikes. At least 2,000 others were injured, including 600 children and 400 women, according to a UN report on recent events in Gaza.

Living close to the border with Israel has serious consequences. Mithqal al-Sirsawy, 40, built his house at a distance of 700 meters (2,300 feet) from Israel. His home has been damaged four times in the last 12 years, since the 2008 war.

“My house was guarded by Israeli tanks or their jets during all the wars – in 2008, 2012, 2014 and most recently, which took place a few weeks ago,” he said. “How long must I put up with this?”

Like the whole Israeli invasion of Gaza, al-Sirsawy had no place of refuge other than UN-run schools, though they were not supposed to be.

“Schooling is unbearable because the classroom is overcrowded. More than two families live in the same class. And the biggest problem is that these schools lack clean water, ”he said.

Al-Sirsawy needs about $ 50,000 to rebuild his house – an unaffordable amount of perfume for $ 300 a month.

“After each war, I received a lot of help to build a house. The service is only about one third of the amount I need, ”he said.

“My life has been turned into hell and my family has not felt safe in the home since the 2008 war,” he said. “When will the Gaza war end so that I can be safe with my family in our house?”

“I don’t think there is any reason to rebuild this building because everything we are building here is being destroyed after the war.”

The Mithqal al-Sirsawy House has been destroyed four times in the last 12 years [Courtesy: Mithqal al-Sirsawy]

He ‘walked over the dead’

Alaa Shamaly, a 36-year-old journalist, has another story. His second home was destroyed in the war after he chose a house he thought was the safest place in Gaza.

Shamaly’s experience in the 2014 war prompted him to withdraw from al-Shujayea, seeing it as one of the most dangerous places for Israel to attack Gaza because of its proximity to the surrounding area.

“On one of the 50 days of the 2014 war, Israeli jets and tanks suddenly detonated a bomb,” Shamaly recalled. “In the wake of each bombing, my family and I fled our homes for the west.

“Many homes were destroyed because of occupants, and many others were killed trying to escape. We walked above the dead, wanting to live. ”

Following the Israeli invasion, Shamaly sought a new place for his family, including his wife and five children.

He bought a house in the six-story apartment building of Anas Bin Malek in the interior of Gaza, hoping it would be the safest place to shoot Israel. But this did not happen during May.

“Israeli occupation has erupted in central Gaza, destroying at least seven large homes, leaving hundreds of families homeless, and killing them brutally on al-Wehda highway, killing more than 40 people,” he said.

Alaa Shamaly, 36, lost her home a second time when Israel was persecuted in May [Courtesy: Alaa Shamaly]

On May 16, Anas Bin Malek’s house was demolished, leaving Shamaly homeless again.

“What bothers me the most is that I’ll be repaying my mortgage over the next two years,” he said, noting that his bank only charges $ 200 a month from his bank account.

After the destruction of his house, Shamaly now lives with his relatives in al-Shujayea, facing an uncertain future.

“I can’t afford a new home until [loan] the sections are over, ”he said.




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