GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Milk and dairy factories in Gaza have steadily defied the Israeli siege imposed since 2007, maintaining capacity and productivity in the face of imported milk and dairy products from more modern and more productive factories in Israel and the West Bank. Despite their technological and financial vulnerabilities, the Gaza factories have become a critical part of the livestock sector, which has declined due to the various wars with Israel.
In the Zaytoun neighborhood, east of Gaza City, lies the Dalloul cheese factory, in operation since 1998. The enterprise had to move three times between 2008 and 2014, after being shelled by Israel for allegedly sheltering rockets. The factory's owner, Mamoun Dalloul, 40, rebuilt it every time.
