Draconian Israeli regulations make it difficult to access the binoculars and long camera lenses they need, but bird watchers are flourishing in the Gaza Strip.
GAZA CITY—The skies of Gaza fill with shifting shapes on an early spring morning. At first they are barely visible, only specks soaring above central Gaza’s wetlands.
Many of these birds fly over Gaza, an overcrowded coastal enclave often described as an “open-air prison.” The birds soar above more than 2 million people who are confined by an air, sea and land blockade imposed by Israel since 2007. The sisters share their photos on social media and are helping spread awareness about birds and conservation in one of the world’s most beleaguered environments. “People are surprised when they see our photos. When they think about Gaza they think it’s only blockade, poverty, destruction. But there is also beauty,” says Mandy.
Despite being hampered by very limited resources and restrictions of movement, the Sirdah sisters are committed to spreading knowledge about birds. In collaboration with academic researchers and other bird-watchers they worked on the firstFor the twins, watching birds is a source of solace in the narrow confines of the battered enclave. “The word happiness is not enough to describe what we feel, especially when we see a rare bird for the first time,” says Lara.
For more than two decades, Rabou has been organizing trips to the coastal enclave’s wetlands to introduce his students to birdwatching and to teach them about Gaza’s biodiversity.
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