Gaza Grocery store opens in the Hyper Mall

There was no social distancing in Gaza at this weeks grand opening of a new grocery store in the Hyper mall, the largest mall in Gaza, located in the Nusseirat refugee camp.   Yes, really.

The management initially assured the Gaza public that all precautions were being taken to assure their safety and well being.

Photos were shown on social media of the staff appropriately masked and gloved.

Gaza  Hyper Mall Grocery Store

Gaza  Hyper Mall Grocery Store

Grand opening day looked very different. Inside the mall, there were local celebrities (actor and comedian Mahmoud Zuaiter) giveaways, and huge shoulder to shoulder crowds.

Yet there was no social distancing.   In view of the coronavirus which has affected over 2,000,000 people worldwide and has left over a hundred thousand dead, this kind of mass gathering is foolhardy and irresponsible.

Its as if the Hamas terror group completely disregarded the health and welfare of the people of Gaza....

Strawberry fields Forever: Gaza exports strawberries across the world

Its time for the strawberry harvest in Gaza.

Some of the luscious red berries are sold domestically.

Others are exported.   According to Gaza Ministry Director Adham Al-Bassiouni  3 tons of the strawberries were exported to the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.

Nine additional tons of the Gaza berries were exported to England.

(Yes, "starving" Gaza exports agricultural products) Bet you didn't know THAT.

According to COGAT, since the start of the season, more than 450 tons of strawberries have been exported overseas and to Judea and Samaria, and strawberry exports are expected to continue over the coming weeks

Vegans for Palestine: This one's for you.

For the newly formed group "Vegans for Palestine", which appears to be one person with a facebook page (I'm looking at you, Ariel!):  presenting the charming Eid greetings from starving Gaza's upscale grocery market, Meat city.

If this makes you want to buy lamb, you are a deeply disturbed human being.

Do you still believe Gaza is  "starving"?   Check out Meat City's Facebook page.  In addition to local products, they carry a variety of European, American, and  (I'm thinking BDS fail, here), Israeli products.

Snapshots from starving Gaza: Meat City Grocery

Snapshots from starving Gaza: Meat City Grocery

Business is brisk at Gaza's Meat city.

Sweet. More dispatches from "Starving Gaza"

Just like the Warsaw ghetto?

Al-Gayyar chocolate store, Gaza, Nov. 25, 2015. (photo by Mohammed Nehro)

In September, Gaza celebrated the grand opening of the al-Gayyar chocolate mall selling chocolate from around the world.

Owner Deeb al-Gayyar, in an interview with Al-Monitor said

“Specific [chocolate] types used to enter Gaza through the tunnels. After allowing them to enter through the Karam Abu Salem [Kerem Shalom] commercial crossing, we started importing more types of chocolate from various countries. Because of the improved trade relations with Turkey, traders find it easier to import Turkish chocolate [brands], such as Solen, Ulker, Bifa, Alpella, Elit, which now dominate the [Gaza] market.”

The Al-Gayyar Chocolate Company alone imports an average of 150 tons of chocolate a month for the Gaza market.  Its not the only confectionery in the territory.

From Al- Monitor

Many new shops have specialized in chocolate for years, such as Bonboniara, which opened in 2011 on al-Wahda Street in central Gaza City. Its owner, Ahmed al-Muzaini, said, “My father was impressed with the idea of chocolate shops that spread in the West Bank during his visit there. So we decided to open this shop [in Gaza], which was met with great demand because of our unique innovation in packaging chocolates at various prices. … The economic situation affects demand, which increases during special events. Despite that, the prices are affordable, but still some people don’t visit such shops, while others visit three times a week to buy chocolate.”

Khaled Subeih, the owner of On the Line, which opened in March on Al-Jalaa Street in central Gaza City, believes that “specialty shops selling chocolates have changed the culture of the people in Gaza, who like new things. Chocolate has become a key commodity for people of all ages, economic status, and for various social occasions.”

After all, nothing says "open air prison" quite like gourmet chocolates.

Heart-Rendering Photos from Gaza

Just weeks after the latest Gaza war, we are still learning about the depths of the humanitarian crisis sweeping the area

On September 20 Almat'haf Hotel and Cultural House posted these shocking photos on their Facebook page.

The horrors of post-war Gaza. Food lines

Over cooked vegetables. Its a war crime

Refined carbohydrates in Gaza. Part of a plan of ethnic cleansing by the worldwide Zionist conspiracy

The ultimate indignity to a besieged population: A custom crepe station

This is the Gaza the mainstream media does not want you to see.

Dastardly Cultural Appropriation In Gaza

We bring you chapter 745 in the ongoing saga of  "Concentration Camp Gaza".

Presenting the Mazaj Restaurant and Cafe

For those of you who still claim that Gaza  is "starving", I present the menu of the Mazaj

Fresh fruit tarts and layer cake, just like the Warsaw ghetto

The Mazaj in Gaza offers its discerning clientele "American" food.  I call cultural appropriation!

Just Like the Warsaw Ghetto? Three Million dollar Flats in Gaza

Seyi Rhodes traveled to the Gaza Strip in February to film an episode of Unreported World.  He was not prepared for what he saw.  Expecting a humanitarian crisis on par with sub-Saharan Africa, instead he found   luxury villas and apartments with prices  that were on par with London and New York.

From the JC.com

    Mr Rhodes said the experience confounded his expectations. "Before I started researching, I thought the region was destitute - people living literally hand-to-mouth on aid, with constant security threats. I took it for granted that people would be living in temporary accommodation provided by the UN."

    In fact, he found "a growing wealth gap", with ordinary families struggling even to rent but new flats being sold for up to $3 million to wealthy Palestinians with money from abroad or from jobs with the Hamas government.

 "As a left-wing student, I was given one view of Gaza/Palestine," said Mr Rhodes. "But I realise now that many of those representations were entirely politically motivated.

    "Even Gazans wouldn't recognise the image that is portrayed of them sometimes. The woman crying over her dead son, the man throwing stones at tanks."

 He added that such stereotypes were "frankly offensive as most of these people live their lives with the same concerns as you and me… getting on the housing ladder, educating your children. People didn't even talk about Israel unless I brought it up."

Yet not long ago, the rhetoric out of Gaza was of mass starvation, and deepening humanitarian crisis. Organizations like Jewish Voice for Peace accused  Israel of starving Gaza.                                                                                                                              

It was a lie.
The Gaza today website, featuring some of the fine dining establishments in Gaza:

Some of these venues are rather elegant. The all you can eat buffet at the Gaza Lighthouse looks delightful.

Roots in Gaza City is lovely, as well

With medical bulletins reporting Western levels of obesity in Gaza, and with the number of activism-tourists moving in and out of the strip on a regular basis, the lies of "Starving Gaza" were unsustainable. Seyi Rhodes stated  "As a left-wing student, I was given one view of Gaza/Palestine...but I realise now that many of those representations were entirely politically motivated."

 Indeed they were.  We won't be fooled again

Hi tech Expo comes to Starving Gaza.

More scenes from Gaza,  the world's largest  Concentration Camp Gaza.  (with heartfelt apologies to North Korea)

 Expotech 2012 - a high tech conference was held this month in Ramallah and  at the Rashad Shawa Cultural Center in Gaza  This years  theme  was “The Pledge for INNOVATION”.

From the Expotech youtube channel


EXPOTECH Technology Week 2012 will carry the theme "The Pledge for INNOVATION" representing the new vision to grow a nation that nurtures innovation and contributes to world knowledge.


EXPOTECH 2012 will look to add value, knowledge and connections. In addition to the two-day IT Conference that will attract world experts discussing "Palestine IT Industry Beyond Borders -- Integrating within the Global Scene" and "Innovation, R&D - The Linkage Between Idea and Commercialization", along with a full day informative conference designed to attract experts in Technology Niche Area(s) to point out the opportunities and the benefits of redirecting and developing business in two of the hottest topics from the perspective of the global technology industry: Mobility and Cloud Computing.
Business Delegations from different parts of the world will be invited, the IT Exhibition will be conducted with a unique and new approach for the renowned EXPOTECH Exhibition to display IT innovation in Palestine and bring together for the first time under one roof all of the IT ecosystem representatives.

Map of the Exhibition Hall  at the  Rashad Shawa Cultural center in  Gaza

My heart breaks at these scenes of want and deprivation. My eyes swell with tears,   The siege of Gaza is clearly cruel and inhumane. Won't someone send a ship from, oh, lets say, Sweden filled with I pads and I phones for this poor beleaguered people?

UPDATE:

More photos from Gaza's spectacular Expotech 2012 at the blog of our friend,   AussieDave