(Photo courtesy of Amir Farshad Ebrahimi)
Gaza Strip (MNN) ― Life in the Gaza Strip is still extremely difficult. The residents live in severe poverty, although life has improved somewhat since Israel sent some shipments of food and water. The Middle East director of E3 Partners, Tom Doyle, said the terrorists do nothing to help their people.
"It's very difficult because of food and water shortage, and because of the war and how many things were destroyed. A lot of people just don't have what they need in Gaza," Doyle said.
Doyle prays for other countries to send aid to the Palestinians.
"We wish that surrounding nations would help out. We hope that some of the other Muslim nations would help out the Palestinians who are sitting there, in some cases, close to starvation," Doyle said.
Residents of the Gaza Strip not only live in poverty, they are surrounded by violence. They often cannot even run errands to get basic supplies without running into fighting between different terrorist groups.
"The violence is the result of various Islamic groups fighting each other in Gaza," Doyle explained. "Islamic jihad, Hamas, Palestinian authority, Fatah, all fight one another, and the people pay for it. So it's not just the war between Palestinian fundamentalists and Israel; there's war within the Palestinian community between the various terrorist groups that are fighting each other. And the people live in the midst of this, so it's a difficult existence. It's just extremely challenging."
When Hamas took control of the Gaza Strip, it promised to do all kinds of humanitarian improvements, such as improving the roads, improving the schools, and building hospitals. So far, none of those promises have been fulfilled.
"Unfortunately, because the government in Gaza is led by terrorists, their heart is not with the people," Doyle explained. "They have one goal: to destroy Israel. So there really isn't a care or concern how the people are suffering, and that's just a shame."
Many Christians and Muslims in the area are frustrated with the government's behavior. They believe Hamas knew its time was running short because the people would only tolerate the conditions for so long. They say that's why Hamas lured Israel into a war by firing 10,000 missiles into the country.
"Now they're popular again," Doyle said. "They are viewed as the defenders of the Palestinians. Many Palestinians that we know, both Muslims and Christians, are very frustrated with the leadership in Gaza and are praying for a new direction."
Christians are still holding strong in Gaza. They pray for the end of the rule of Hamas, and they need our prayers, says Doyle.
"The church is definitely in the midst of the epicenter of Gaza. They are meeting, praying and sharing God's Word around Gaza. We pray for them, for their perseverance, for their strength and boldness in the midst of this difficult time."
