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The militant group Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, says it has begun to clean up the waste that used to pour into the Mediterranean Sea untreated. And Gazans are returning to the beach.
GAZA: Palestinians flocked to the beach in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip on Saturday as students start their summer vacation. “The sea is our only outlet here in the Gaza Strip,” says 65-year-old Farid Naeem. “Last year, coming to the beach was not an option; there was an atmosphere of war,” says young Gazan Ahmed Al-Attar. The water looks crystal blue, with no trace
Untreated sewage has flowed directly into the waters off Gaza for years, causing an environmental disaster.
"We couldn't come before because the sea was polluted and if we did, our children used to come back home with viruses and skin diseases," says one Gazan local.
"Today the area is clean and the sea is clean. We felt as if we were in another country," a mother of four told Reuters.