A quarantine inside a quarantine: a

coronavirus diary from Gaza

https://mondoweiss.net/2020/09/a-quarantine-inside-a-
quarantine-a-coronavirus-diary-from-gaza /
Aya Al Ghazzawi shares a day in the life in Gaza during the COVID-19
pandemic, "The coronavirus is just another siege, a quarantine inside a
quarantine."
B Y   A Y A A L G H A Z Z A W I   SEPTEMBER 3, 2020

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A PALESTINIAN FAMILY STAYS AT HOME DURING A LOCKDOWN FOLLOWING THE

OUTBREAK OF THE CORONAVIRUS IN GAZA CITY SEPTEMBER 2, 2020. (PHOTO:
MOHAMMED SALEM/APA IMAGES)

September 2, 2020
8:oo am: I start my day feeding my four kittens along with their mother
Semsem. They are growing bigger and brighter. My parents think I
should gift them to some people who may be interested in having them.
But many can barely provide food to their families these days. Having a
pet has become a luxury. Imagine me having five along with their
coming siblings. Yes, Semsem is pregnant for the second time! 

I have had breakfast with my family and pick up my phone for the latest
updates regarding Covid-19. There are about 326 positive active cases in
Gaza. The Ministry of Health says it’s under control so far but we need
to stay home until specialists map the outbreak in the long-besieged
Gaza. The coronavirus is just another siege, a quarantine inside a
quarantine. 

Mom asks me about the virus continuously. I find it ironic that we are
finally stressed about something other than Israeli assaults!

Many Gazans have begun to think that the world and us are in the same
boat under the pandemic. Current casualties reported in the news are not
a result of Israeli airstrikes which hit many resistance sites in the last 15
days. The patients who contracted the virus will not have to go through
amputation operations as happened in the Great Return March when
Israeli soldiers targeted protesters’ limbs. At first, we found,
sarcastically, a fortress in the 14-year Israeli imposed siege. The
restriction on movement kept us from leaving Gaza and getting infected.
We remained out of the pandemic’s reach. The government here did its
best to prevent the pandemic from spreading in the community. It placed
everyone who entered Gaza into quarantine centers far from the rest of
society for no less than 21 days. But we knew it’s inevitable. Sadly we
are seeking a shared humanity in illness and vulnerability. Decades of
dehumanization and inequality can do that.

Is the coronavirus the great leveler?  Is the rest of the world really the
same as us now? 

PALESTINIAN POLICE OFFICERS CLOSE A ROAD WITH

CONCRETE BARRIERS DURING A LOCKDOWN FOLLOWING
THE OUTBREAK OF THE CORONAVIRUS, IN DEIR AL BALAH
 IN THE CENTRAL OF GAZA STRIP, ON SEPTEMBER 3, 2020.
(PHOTO: ASHRAF AMRA/APA IMAGES)
2:00 pm: Everybody in our house is sweating. We look gloomy and
fatigued. Our ceiling is hit directly by the sun’s heat. The wind blows an
inferno. We are already experiencing a heavy heat wave in the hottest
month of the entire year. Fans are turned off because we do not have
electricity. The only power plant in Gaza has been forced to shut down.
Boys are sitting in a boys’ room, and girls in theirs. We change our
clothes repeatedly trying not to think of the laundry. We are all thinking
of having a shower.  However, a shower cannot be done without water.
Our water tanks have been empty for three days.

An hour later, my dad brings buckets of water carried from downstairs.

He goes downstairs, then upstairs many times to get us enough water.
There is no elevator, which necessitates he does the physical strain. Two
of my brothers help him with it.  He insists we use it only for necessary
things like doing the dishes and using the bathroom.

4:00 pm: We are all heading to the living room. We leave our rooms
because our neighbors are starting a conversation. We can hear every
single word they say. They can hear us easily too. Our window
overlooks theirs and vice versa. I believe it is a common issue for most
Palestinians in the Gaza ghetto. Gaza has been recognized as the biggest
concentration camp on Earth where two million Palestinians live in 360
square kilometers. Privacy almost does not exist. Everyone knows every
one’s stories.  We decide to let them speak freely and sit together in one
room to give them some privacy. 

“Look! Employees are queuing in front of ATMs for their salaries.

Aren’t they afraid of contracting the virus?” my sister prompts. “They
have kids to feed. They need the money,” my brother responds. “They
are paid only 50% of their salaries anyway,” my sister replies. 
PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY EMPLOYEES WEAR FACE MASKS
AS THEY WAIT TO RECEIVE THEIR SALARIES FROM A
PALESTINE BANK ATM IN THE CENTRAL GAZA STRIP,
SEPTEMBER 1, 2020. (PHOTO: ASHRAF AMRA)

7:00 pm: We have piles of clothes that need laundry. We are also
running out of bread. We are supposed to have four hours of electricity
every day. Uh, It’s extremely hot in here. It’s getting dark too. Oh God,
grant us patience. We start complaining. 

9:00 pm: Children are sleeping on the floor to cool off. We turn on the
LEDs which are a safe alternative source to electricity. Candles are not
used at our house.  Families have died and houses burned down because
of them. Mom asks me to call my brother Muhannad in Algeria to check
upon him. “My battery is almost dead. I’ll call him tomorrow,” I answer.

10:10 pm: Electricity is ON! Everyone is rushing to plug in appliances

and charge phones. Mom turns on the washing machine and then hurries
to the flour container and starts kneading the dough for our bread. We
help her with baking in the electric stove and packing bread in bags. 
When I have finished, I surf the internet. Breaking news reads, “Three
siblings in Al Nuseirat camp die as a candle burns their home”. I gasp
shouting Gaza needs no more tragedies. 

11:30 pm: I put my head on my pillow thinking of my cat and her little
babies, the Al Nuseirat accident and my brother whom I cannot wait to
call tomorrow. The question again jumps into my head, “Is it fair to
equate the suffering of the world with ours?” My mind echoes an
emphatic, hell no!
 PALESTINIANS CHECK ON A HOUSE THAT BURNED DOWN
IN AL-NUSIRAT REFUGEE CAMP, TAKING THE LIFE OF
THREE CHILDREN ON SEPTEMBER 2, 2020. THE FIRE WAS
STARTED BY A CANDLE USED TO LIGHT UP THEIR ROOM
BECAUSE NO ELECTRICITY WAS AVAILABLE DUE TO POWER
CUTS. (PHOTO: ASHRAF AMRA/APA IMAGES)