Ruptly
"Displaced residents from Rafah, in the southern part of the Gaza Strip, have transformed empty metal cans into planters, creating a small gardening project as an alternative source of income in the face of difficult living conditions. Footage filmed on Thursday shows a small nursery in the Al-Mawasi area. People were seen preparing metal containers, filling them with compost and soil, before planting and watering the seedlings. Shadi Za'arab, who initiated the project, said it began after they lost their farm and fled to Khan Younis, with no other source of income remaining. He explained that due to a lack of suitable planting containers, they had to collect discarded metal cans from garbage sites and reuse them for farming. "Depending on the amount of compost available, we try to plant as many seedlings as possible, whether 1,000 or 2,000," Za'arab said, adding, "But we lack sufficient resources, so we cannot plant every day." Mohammed, another displaced worker involved in the project, explained that he turned to growing plants in recycled containers after his greenhouses were destroyed during the war. He emphasised that the nursery's goal is to provide a small source of income for him and affordable seedlings for local residents. "I used to work near the Egyptian border, but my workplace was destroyed," the man said. "After fleeing the area, I had no choice but to start again from scratch, because farming is the only profession I know." The organisers said the initiative has also created work opportunities for unemployed young men, who purchase seedlings and pots from the nursery before travelling through neighbourhoods on horse-drawn carts to sell them to residents at affordable prices. The war in Gaza began on October 7, 2023, after Hamas launched an attack on Israel that killed 1,139 people, most of them Israeli civilians, and resulted in more than 200 hostages being taken. In response, Israel launched a large-scale military campaign in Gaza involving airstrikes and a ground offensive. According to figures cited at the time of publication, 72,740 Palestinians had been killed and 172,555 injured. Last January, US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff announced the launch of the second phase of President Donald Trump’s 20-point plan aimed at ending the conflict in Gaza, including transitioning from a ceasefire to disarmament, establishing a technocratic administration, and beginning reconstruction efforts. "
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