Back to shattered homes

GAZA STRIP: Just after Israel announced that it was calling a unilateral ceasefire in Gaza, it rained. And Palestinians heaved a sigh of relief. Finally, after 22 days of intense bombings, they can get back some semblance of their lives and try and pick up the shattered pieces. For now, they can stop worrying about bombs exploding around them or weapons spraying white phosphorous that attack and eat up their flesh and muscles. They can also let their children go out to play again. But they still have to worry about the unexploded ordnance lying on the ground which could go off any time.

Reduced to rubble: Some of the Palestinian returnees

sitting on top of what remains of their homes. They are still far from being out of danger zone

When the Ermilat family heard of the ceasefire and returned to their home yesterday morning to assess the damage, they found an unexploded shell nearby. “It is so dangerous. We have kids running about. I told the police about it but they have not done anything yet,” said Adib Ermilat, 23. His huge two-storey house is just 150m away from the Egyptian border and came under intense attack from Israeli F-16s.
On Jan 10 at about 5.30pm, an F-16 shot a small rocket at their home and this family of 26, children included, rushed out helter-skelter to escape. “We ran in different directions and within 10 minutes, the planes shot a second rocket — only this time it was a huge rocket and our house was badly damaged. “Thank God we managed to make it out in time,” he said when met at his home. When the first rocket came, it was instinct that made them dash out. Just the day before, their neighbour’s house was hit and he died. The family lost everything in the home. And Adib’s brother, Munir, was busy going through the rubble patiently and digging bits and pieces to try and salvage whatever he could. He dug out some of his children’s clothes and a jacket.

A time to salvage: A boy watches from inside his ruined house as

adults go through the pile of debris outside for whatever they can find.

“My brother lost all his money, his wife’s gold and everything,” said Adib as his brother continued digging through the rubble.Neighbour Ghanim Wedah al-Ghadi, whose house was a pile of rubble, planned to set up tents on the land until he could find a way to rebuild his home.
“Because of the economic blockade and the closed borders, there is no construction material coming into Gaza. So I have no idea when we can re-build the house. We will sleep in the tents until then,” he said.Like many others here, Ghanim too is wary about the Israeli unilateral ceasefire.“I worry because it is coming from one side. And anything can happen,” he said. He was right. It is, after all, only an uneasy lull.