Residents of Sheikh Zayed City in Gaza rage at the normalization agreement between the UAE and Israel
For 20 years, the Palestinians have had a deep appreciation for the UAE’s founder for his generosity, especially those who live in the apartment complex that bears his name in the Gaza Strip.
Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan donated 62 million dollars as a gift to the Palestinians 15 years ago to provide housing for hundreds of families.
Sheikh Zayed City has changed the face of the northern part of Gaza with its paved roads and its seventy multi-storey residential buildings.
However, this gratitude to the founding father of the UAE turned into anger at his son, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, after his country announced on August 13 that it would become the first Arab Gulf country to sign a “normalization” agreement with Israel. Bahrain followed suit a month later.
Although the majority of Gaza’s two million people need humanitarian aid, Maher Hamida, 57, who lives in Sheikh Zayed City, said that aiding the Palestinians does not give the UAE the right to reconcile with Israel. Which he described as his “enemy.”
This widespread anger among the city’s residents prevailed in other parts of the Hamas-run Gaza Strip and the West Bank. The Palestinians fear that the Emirati move will weaken a long-standing Arab demand for an Israeli withdrawal from the occupied territories and acceptance of a Palestinian state in exchange for normal relations with Arab countries.
“It burned my heart,” Al-Talouli said. “Seeing the Israeli and Emirati flags fluttering together “burned my heart,”. He recalled when Israel demolished his home in Jabalia camp during the second Palestinian uprising that began in 2000.
The Gaza Strip, only 360 square kilometres, has been subjected to blockade by Israel and Egypt for years, which indicates security concerns related to Hamas, which rules it.
But despite the political and economic troubles the Palestinians face in the narrow coastal strip, Talouli said he now does not want anything else from the Emirates.
“This is like feeding an animal to kill it for food eventually,” he added.
