Displaced Palestinians living in tents and makeshift shelters by the sea have begun sewing clothes from blankets in a desperate effort to stay warm as Gaza braces for a cold, wet winter.
Nadia Attia, whose “Needle and Thread” initiative is spearheading this craft had launched in September but the scheme relies entirely on volunteers, though some receive a small payment. The clothes are sold for between 70 and 120 shekels ($18-$30) but prices are lower for individuals who bring blankets.
Attia, aged 31, and others measure, cut and sew the thermal fabrics in a tent near the beach at Al-Mawasi in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip.
The work is entirely manual and labour intensive but even though they lack electricity, they generate power by using the pedals of a bicycle connected by a belt to their sewing machine.
“Winter is coming for the second time (since the start of the war) and people are without any (warm) clothes,” Attia had said to a reporter, adding, “There are no clothes coming into the Gaza Strip, so we thought a lot about how we could find a solution to the lack of fabrics, and we came up with the idea of recycling thermal blankets into winter clothes,” Attia said.
A Gazan winter can be harsh, heralded by cold temperatures and strong winds.
After over a year of war, many Gazans have no income. They few that own have attempted to sell their possessions, including second-hand clothes, but almost no-one can afford the prices of even basic goods.
According to U.N. data, the amount of international aid coming into Gaza has fallen to its lowest level all year, with a global hunger monitor warning of a looming famine.
It is estimated that two million people in Gaza have been displaced by Israel’s constant assault on the coastal strip.
The Israeli offensive in Gaza was precipitated by an attack led by Hamas militants on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, whereby 1,200 people were killed and about 250 taken as hostages back into the Palestinian enclave, according to reports by Israeli officials.
Currently, the overall death toll in Gaza is nearing 43,000, according to the enclave’s health ministry.
