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Gaza Family Homeless Following Slum Demolition

Following a decision by the Hamas-led government in Gaza to destroy a slum that they claim was illegally constructed, the Abu Amrah family finds itself homeless and with few options, writes Asmaa al-Ghoul.
Palestinian women retrieve their belongings after their house was demolished by Hamas security forces in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip May 18, 2010. Hamas Islamists ruling the Gaza Strip have been demolishing Palestinian homes they say were built without permits, leading to unwelcome comparisons to arch-enemy Israel. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa (GAZA - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR2E1OR
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While the walk home from school used to take no more than ten minutes, it now takes twin sisters Rania and Amal Abu-Amrah nearly an hour to get home by bus. Since it’s difficult to reach their far-off home, I waited for them to finish their evening shift at the secondary school and took the bus with them.

Amal carried a worn denim bag, while Rania carried none. Rania said that the people in the heavy government vehicles that came to demolish their homes gathered all of their belongings and put them in a large bin — resembling a garbage container — and then dropped it in an empty lot filled with piles of furniture and clothes. This is how her school bag and books got lost.

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