By Qais Abu Samra
BETHLEHEM CITY, Palestine (AA) – For nearly a decade now, a Palestinian man has been turning spent tear gas canisters used by the Israeli army against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank into souvenirs carrying a message of peace.
Civil engineer Akram al-Waera lives in the Aida refugee camp, near the city of Bethlehem in the southern West Bank, which Israeli soldiers frequently raid or interfere with protests.
Al-Waera, 56, who has a small workshop under his house, recycles the waste of gas canisters once used by Israeli soldiers against the camp residents.
Saying that the Palestinians want to live freely and in peace like everyone else in the world, Al-Waera said that the Palestinian people want to convey the message of peace to the world by turning the ammunition used against them into souvenirs.
Noting that he is also a refugee from the occupied city of Jerusalem, Al-Waera said that he lives with the dream of returning to the place he came from, like other Palestinians.
Speaking to Anadolu earlier this year, Al-Waera said that Israeli forces used real bullets as well as tear gas to disperse peaceful demonstrations by Palestinians.
“We are being showered with tear gas bombs by Israeli forces every day in the Palestinian territories, especially in the Aida Refugee Camp,” he said, adding that he started to transform the waste from Israel weapons used against the Palestinians in 2014.
Saying that he makes products from various used Israeli weapons, he added: “In 2014, violent incidents took place with the occupying Israeli forces in the Palestinian territories. At that time, Aida Refugee Camp was among the areas most affected by the incidents. Every day, we were targeted with hundreds of tear gas bombs.”
The camp is critically important due to its proximity to the West Bank Separation Wall – also known as Wall of Shame – and an Israeli military post.
- Products bear national symbols of Palestine
Explaining that the idea of using the empty tear gas canisters as accessories arose after intense attacks by the Israeli army, the Palestinian man said that he collected the waste from the streets and also sometimes bought it from scrap dealers.
Noting that the waste he collected went through several stages to make them suitable for use, Al-Waera said that he transformed the tear gas canisters into works of art.
Apart from jewelry, he also creates home accessories and uses national symbols in most of the products.
Aida Refugee Camp, located in the southern occupied West Bank, is frequented by domestic and foreign tourists. A giant key symbol was installed in 2008 to draw attention to the right of return of Palestinians who were forcibly displaced to the area in 1948.
Al-Waera and his children tell tourists visiting the refugee camp about both the camp and the plight of the Palestinians living under Israeli occupation.
Noting that the products he exhibits in his small workshop get great attention from tourists, he added: “I was able to transform a lethal object into a product that helps people and conveys peace and love.”
“Tourists are also very surprised to learn that these accessories are made from tear gas canisters,” he added.