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Born behind bars: What it’s like to raise a baby in Gaza’s prisons

Incarcerated women in Gaza, often ostracized by their families and communities, must relinquish their children to uncertain lives at 2 years of age.
The hand of an alleged Palestinian collaborator hangs out of his cell as he speaks with a security guard inside a Hamas-run prison in Gaza City April 23, 2013. The Islamist Hamas government, which is pledged to Israel's destruction by force of arms, is lauding a recent campaign to root out informants in its midst, which it hopes will deprive Israel of a subtle but effective tool. Picture taken April 23, 2013. To match Feature PALESTINIANS-HAMAS/SPIES   REUTERS/Suhaib Salem (GAZA - Tags: POLITICS) - RTXZEXX
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GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Fourteen-month-old Barra took his first steps in a prison cell no more than 5 meters (16 feet) long. He stumbled. He got up, walked a few more steps and fell again. Barra is spending the first months of his life with his mother in Ansar prison, where she is serving a seven-year sentence for unlawful sexual intercourse, that is, prostitution.

Barra’s mother told Al-Monitor, “I have served nine months of my sentence, and I hope that my appeal will succeed, and I will serve only one-third of the sentence.” She said that the prison does not provide proper food or clothing for her son and that she has to buy everything from the prison’s grocery store. “My son is only eating bread dipped in tea because there is no baby food,” she stated.

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