Palestinians in northern Gaza only option to eat is to collect legumes, rice amid sand, gravel

By Mustafa Haboush

GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) - Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have no other option but to gather legumes and rice from the sand and gravel to provide food for their children during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

That is because grains were scattered from a shipment dropped by a plane but it fell into the sea. The plane was distributing aid above the northern part of the enclave.

Anadolu observed a group of Palestinians on the beach in northern Gaza gathering rice, lentils and pasta from the sands and gravel. They separated them using a small sieve.

One told Anadolu that the plane dropped the shipment but it fell into the sea, and they were unable to retrieve it.

“Some of the aid, including rice, lentils, and pasta, scattered near the shore, so we decided to gather it and clean it from the sand and small gravel using this sieve to prepare our iftar for today,” he said. “After extracting the grains from the sieve, we get them mixed with impurities and small gravel, so we empty them into a container and clean them in a process that lasts for several hours until we finally get a handful of legumes.”

“My message to Muslims and Arabs: Where is the honor of Islam? Instead of dropping aid from planes, bring it through the crossings so we can receive it in a dignified and safe manner,” a young man told Anadolu.

“What are you waiting for? Why don't the Arabs stand united to help us?” he said exasperated.

The Palestinian said he went out Friday before sunrise to gather broken pasta to cook soup for his children.

Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on the Gaza Strip since an Oct. 7 cross-border attack led by the Palestinian resistance group, Hamas, in which 1,163 people were killed.

More than 31,500 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have since been killed in Gaza, and 73,546 injured amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

The Israeli war has pushed 85% of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of most food, clean water and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to ensure its forces do not commit acts of genocide, and guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.

*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala​​​​​​​