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Russian wives in Gaza long for home

Integration is difficult for the many women from the former Soviet republics who have settled in Gaza with their Palestinian husbands.
A Russian woman married to a Palestinian speaks to the media at the Erez border crossing after leaving the Gaza Strip January 2, 2009. Israel allowed 443 foreigners living in the Gaza Strip to leave on Friday, a defence official said on Thursday as Israeli forces attacked the Hamas-controlled territory for a sixth day.      REUTERS/Amir Cohen (ISRAEL) - RTR22ZOO
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GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — "I miss the scent of the forest. Sometimes, I feel that I can smell it." This is what Svetlana Birova misses most from "Mother Russia" after 20 years of not leaving the Gaza Strip, even for short trips.

"Although I miss my country, I consider my homeland to be where my husband, my son and my daughter Miriam are. I remember the difficulties I faced in the first years here because of the difference in cultures, but, with the help of my husband, I resisted homesickness," Birova said.

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