Gaza: The smell of destruction

Story of Sameh Al-Sawafiri, Chicken Farmer from Zaytoun, South of Gaza City

In late July 2009, Oxfam documented the lives of three families in Gaza affected by the Israeli war and ongoing blockade.

Sameh Al Sawaferi, a father of 11 and the biggest chicken and egg farmer in the Gaza Strip, lost 50 years of hard work on one January day. Before Operation Cast Lead, he provided the Gaza Strip with 10 percent of its eggs. Every day he sold 1,000 chickens and produced 120,000 packs of eggs. He even supplied the aid agency Oxfam with eggs to distribute to impoverished Gazans dependent on food aid.

During the Israeli war his seven farms were destroyed leaving tens of thousands of his chickens dead. He has only been able to rebuild one, using what limited materials he can find in Gaza.

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