The village known as the Swedish Village, which was established by Swedish donors in 1965 on 40 dunams of land, has been forgotten with the passing of time. Situated along the Gaza beach near the Palestine-Egypt border, conditions in the village have deteriorated to the point that it is now considered one of the poorest and severest places to live in the Gaza Strip.
The village, which is made up of 60 families, has near non-existent infrastructure. Houses are covered with asbestos and telephone lines only reached the village a few months ago. Residents also suffer from a lack of sewage treatment facilities and a crisis in their transportation system. Residents, including school students, are forced to walk long distances and wait for long periods by the side of the road until they find a means of transportation.
The majority of inhabitants work in the fishing industry which has recently become untenable as a result of the high levels of marine pollution, Israeli violations against fishermen and by virtue of its proximity to the Egyptian border.
The residents of the Swedish Village call on the world to intervene and endeavour to help provide them with the basic necessities of life, including improved accommodation. Houses in the village, which are no more than 80m², have become dilapidated over time and are unstable due to poor foundations.
MEMO Photographer: Mohammed Asad
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