Looking for Trouble

Seattle delegates in Gaza hear stories full of sadness and of courage

As she did last year, Gerri has organized a Washington Physicians for Social Responsibility delegation of doctors and other health care providers to work in hospitals and clinics in Gaza in an effort to directly help the people there and to bring attention to the ongoing humanitarian crisis that the Israeli blockade has created. She will be sending back reports from inside the Israeli blockade.



The stories we are hearing as we go about our work are full of great sadness and often, great courage. This week marked the commemoration of The Nakba (Catastrophe) – the time 62 years ago when hundreds of thousands of Palestinians were driven from their homes as the state of Israel came into being.

Now, while the siege continues, these stories most frequently reflect the pain remaining from the thousands of deaths, tens of thousands of injuries and countless destruction resulting from the December 2008/January 2009 attacks by Israel on Gaza.

In the Women Empowerment Clinics we hear of families who narrowly escaped prior to the total destruction of their homes. We listen as stories of the death of mothers, fathers, sisters and brothers are related. In these clinics, the “Post Traumatic Stress” treatment includes group sessions, physical exercise, personal counseling and mind/body care. Across Gaza, there are projects of healing, but the hovering trauma in the population of Gaza is nearly universal.

Today, several members of our delegation were treated to a visit to a very special place: The Qattan Centre for the Child is directed by Reem, a brilliant woman of purpose.

During the summer, this center hosts 1,000 children per day – children using the library, doing art projects, learning about science, learning to use computers, participating in theatre productions.

The facility was funded by one individual – believing that education of children is the most essential need for a successful community.

This summer, UNRWA will again host the Summer Games for approximately 250,000 children of Gaza. Living only miles from the sea, some participating children will be seeing the Mediterranean for the first time. Swimming in the sea, however, is prohibited due to sewage pollution.

Bombing of Gaza’s infrastructure and prohibition of repair of these facilities due to siege restriction of supplies entering this land mandates that no one swim in the coastal waters of Gaza.

As we travel through Gaza City, we see an occasional new car. These cars enter the Gaza Strip through the tunnels from Egypt. We will visit these tunnels on Friday.