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.
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.
In July 2012, the Gaza government led by Hamas demolished houses belonging to 152 families from the Abu Amrah clan. The houses extend over 25 acres, according to the Land Authority in Gaza.
All the students got off the bus except for the twin sisters, who got off last in the distant area of al-Maslakh al-Jadeed.
