NewsGuy
11-16-2006, 01:51 PM
By Rachel Saperstein, Neve Dekalim/Nitzan
A year and three months have passed since our expulsion from Gush Katif. We live in the refugee camp of Nitzan between Ashdod and Ashkelon. This plywood “caravilla†is not our home. In two or more years Moshe and I will once again receive our notice of eviction. As of today not one person has received permission to build permanent housing. Work is in progress on infrastructure in the upper heights of Nitzan but lots have yet to be allocated. Settlement in the Lachish area has been stalled. The hill called “Egoz†has been declared a ‘green’ area, a ‘military’ area, an ‘electrical pylon’ area. We must look for another hill. When we visit the Lachish area we see in the distance hundreds of Arab homes that have been built willy-nilly on every hill and dale. There is barely a Jewish presence in the area. Meanwhile we continue to live in the refugee camp.
[...]
We head off for the wedding of the Goldsreins and the Safras. Two Neve Dekalim families now joined in matrimony. We meet our friends living in other refugee camps. We hug, we kiss, we exchange excited greetings. The women are elegant.
“You look gorgeous, Rachel.â€
“Thanks to Sara†I reply.
I look at the camp from the road as we return. Row after row of tan houses with a red roof. There are no trees, no bushes, no greenery.
We remake our lives as best as we can. The kindness of our people remains. But we are in mourning. A year later, we hear the explosions in the Gaza Strip as the IDF pounds away at Arab rocket launch sites. We were expelled. But the war, the attacks into Israel continue. Had our expulsion brought peace perhaps we would accept our fate. Instead it brought the rocket launchers closer to the borders of Ashkelon and Sderot.
We move on and move forward, and then we move backward. I hear the whistle of the train. I hear children playing. I hear men speaking on the walk to synagogue. I hear the thump of tank fire.
This is a day in a refugee camp.
More from Rachel Saperstein (http://english.katif.net/index.php?sub=8&more=1)
A year and three months have passed since our expulsion from Gush Katif. We live in the refugee camp of Nitzan between Ashdod and Ashkelon. This plywood “caravilla†is not our home. In two or more years Moshe and I will once again receive our notice of eviction. As of today not one person has received permission to build permanent housing. Work is in progress on infrastructure in the upper heights of Nitzan but lots have yet to be allocated. Settlement in the Lachish area has been stalled. The hill called “Egoz†has been declared a ‘green’ area, a ‘military’ area, an ‘electrical pylon’ area. We must look for another hill. When we visit the Lachish area we see in the distance hundreds of Arab homes that have been built willy-nilly on every hill and dale. There is barely a Jewish presence in the area. Meanwhile we continue to live in the refugee camp.
[...]
We head off for the wedding of the Goldsreins and the Safras. Two Neve Dekalim families now joined in matrimony. We meet our friends living in other refugee camps. We hug, we kiss, we exchange excited greetings. The women are elegant.
“You look gorgeous, Rachel.â€
“Thanks to Sara†I reply.
I look at the camp from the road as we return. Row after row of tan houses with a red roof. There are no trees, no bushes, no greenery.
We remake our lives as best as we can. The kindness of our people remains. But we are in mourning. A year later, we hear the explosions in the Gaza Strip as the IDF pounds away at Arab rocket launch sites. We were expelled. But the war, the attacks into Israel continue. Had our expulsion brought peace perhaps we would accept our fate. Instead it brought the rocket launchers closer to the borders of Ashkelon and Sderot.
We move on and move forward, and then we move backward. I hear the whistle of the train. I hear children playing. I hear men speaking on the walk to synagogue. I hear the thump of tank fire.
This is a day in a refugee camp.
More from Rachel Saperstein (http://english.katif.net/index.php?sub=8&more=1)