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Gaza’s astronomy fans gaze longingly at heavens

Gaza's astronomy enthusiasts lament that the siege on the Gaza Strip prevents them from establishing quality laboratories and traveling abroad for educational events.
AFP PHOTO / Mohammed ABED

“What gets to me is that I was unable to take part in the 2021 astronomy camp in Hebron as the Israeli occupation refused to grant us permits,” Jumana Koueider, an amateur astronomer from the Gaza Strip, lamented in her statement to Al-Monitor.

Koueider explained that the camp, which was held on Aug. 5, included an observational astronomy training course held at the observatory of Birzeit University and at the planetarium of the Korea Palestine Center in Hebron, as the month of August offers the most beautiful astronomical events in the Palestinian sky of Palestine: a major meteor shower.

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