A 2012 report warned of the fragility of the Strip. Now, unemployment is above 50% and many wish to leave. But from cafes to software houses, an indomitable spirit still shines Mohammed Nasser, 28, had had enough. He was at the Gaza Strip’s Rafah crossing, about to leave through Egypt for Turkey on a tourist visa, having saved $650 for Egyptian officials to ensure him a place at the front of the queue. He used the Arabic word for emigration: _hijra_. “I will not come back to Gaza,” said the electrician. “Here, even if you are experienced, there is no work.” Hoping one day to be joined by his wife and three young children, he really plans to be smuggled by sea to Greece and then to Sweden. Would that be dangerous? “No more dangerous than here,” he said, smiling thinly. “My wife tried to prevent me from going but she couldn’t.” Continue reading...
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