LONDON: Sleep has turned into a shift in the tent camps of Gaza. Parents alternate during the nite to keep an eye out for rats, snakes, and scorpions rather than for warmth or protection from assault. The alternative for thousands of displaced families would be waking up to discover a child bitten or worse. According to Maysa Yousef, an artist and mother of three in central Gaza, “different kinds of pests appear every summer.” This summer, we are discovering scorpions and snakes.
She claimed that controlling rats had gotten particularly challenging. Rodents thrive in Gaza because of its abundance of trash, Yousef told Arab News. “They consume everything.” During the day, they stroll alongside you or in front of you as though they were family.
Her daughters are afraid. Instead of sitting on the ground at nite, they clamber into chairs. Yousef remarked, “They tell me not to let the rat walk next to me.” For Palestinians who have been displaced by more than two years of conflict, the rats are just one more burden. Many live in cramped tent encampments without access to clean water, sanitary facilities, garbage collection, or pesticides.
Families started complaining about rats and weasels attacking kids, polluting food and water, and gnawing through tents as the spring weather warmed. Others reported seeing earwigs, fleas, snakes, and scorpions inside shelters, while stray dogs and cats wander the streets and camp boundaries.
Also Read:
Discover 22 Exciting Activities in Riyadh for the Week Ahead
