Gaza Man Turns Aid Parachute Into Shelter

When Naeem al-Goaan saw a parachute descending off the coast of Gaza, he saw it for more than just the aid being dropped into the food-deprived and war-ravaged Palestinian territory

Palestinian Territories, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 22nd Apr, 2024) When Naeem al-Goaan saw a parachute descending off the coast of Gaza, he saw it for more than just the aid being dropped into the food-deprived and war-ravaged Palestinian territory.

After "the parachute fell into the sea, we brought it (to shore) in a small boat," the Palestinian fisherman from the central Gaza Strip city of Deir el-Balah told AFP.

"People took the aid and we took (the parachute) to turn it into a tent where my sister sleeps at night, whereas during the day, we turn it into a store."

The parachute's fabric now stands repurposed into a roughly one-square-metre (10 square feet) tent by the Deir el-Balah beach, stretched over a structure of wooden planks and metal tubes.

Complete with an awning to provide protection from the sun, the Goaan family sat in the shade on Monday as they waited for people to buy their wares -- eggs, canned goods, instant noodles -- stacked on a wooden bench.

Getting the parachute took effort, Goaan said. "We struggled a lot to get it, and the boat capsized twice before we retrieved it."

The prospect of the war, already more than six months old, dragging on further made the effort worthwhile said Goaan.