|
http://blogs.aljazeera.net 'We don't want a crossing for plates, cups and tooth brushes' The Khadr family But people in Gaza need more than goods. "We don’t want a crossing for plates and cups, and tooth brushes. We ask them to open the crossing for everything. Not only food. We are calling for Israel, Europe and Arab states to let the construction material into Gaza. It is most important to rebuild the houses and factories and farms." Zaed Khadr’s house was destroyed during the war in Gaza. He doesn’t have a job, even though he previously worked in Israel for years on farms. But now under the siege he cannot leave. He’s trapped inside Gaza’s borders. Next door Zaed’s brother, Mohammed, is raising 7 daughters in a tent. His house was destroyed as well. Thin mattresses are piled up in the corner. A fan stirs the hot air inside the plastic tent. And sitting quietly, are three girls, watching cartoons. Mohammed’s clothes are worn, full of holes and rips. And he is full of anger at the family’s situation. He says Israel "erased everything, the land, the trees, the houses, and now we are living like dead people". Sitting on the balcony of my hotel in Gaza, I’m thinking about the Khadr family. Mohammed said, "The whole world wanted to cross the sea to help us." But they failed and until the siege is lifted completely, the world will continue to fail the people of Gaza.
|