The red-covered table stretching hundreds of meters long carved the path through the tiled rub hills in southern Gaza as families gathered together in the sacred month of Muslims in Ramadan.
As the sun sets in the neighborhood of Rafa, where Israel’s war with Gaza leaves little to none of the buildings, hundreds of Palestinians of all ages delved into Iftar’s diet and documented their day’s fast.
“People are deeply saddened and everything around us feels heartbreaking,” said Malak Fadda, who organized the communal meal.
“So we decided to bring joy to this street, just like we did before the war.”
The music wafted from the speakers into the crowds of Rafa. The Rafa crowd sat in long plastic chairs underneath the lights, buntings between broken concrete, Palestinian flags.
According to the United Nations, Israeli artillery fires have driven out almost the entire population and caused widespread hunger.
The ceasefire that came into effect on January 19th has increased the flow of aid to the devastated Palestinian territory, but hundreds of thousands live in tents and many are camped at the tile rub in their former homes.
In the northern city of Beit Rahiya, dozens of people rebelliously joined together in the light of a declined night, destroying fasting in the remains of semi-collapsed buildings.
“We are here in the middle of destruction and tile rub. Despite the pain and wounds, we are still in motion,” said Mohammed Abu al-Jidian.
“Here we eat iftar on the land and we don’t leave this place,” he added.
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