Fledgling radio station aims to be 'voice of the people' in war-shattered Gaza

Deir el Balah, Palestinian Territories: From a small studio in the central city of Deir el Balah, Sylvia Hassan s voice echoes across the Gaza Strip,...

Deir el-Balah, Palestinian Territories: From a small studio in the central city of Deir el-Balah, Sylvia Hassan's voice echoes across the Gaza Strip, broadcast on one of the Palestinian territory's first radio stations to hit the airwaves after two years of war.

Hassan, a radio host on fledgling station "Here Gaza", delivers her broadcast from a well-lit room, as members of the technical team check levels and mix backing tracks on a sound deck.

"This radio station was a dream we worked to achieve for many long months and sometimes without sleep," Hassan told AFP.

"It was a challenge for us, and a story of resilience."

Hassan said the station would focus on social issues and the humanitarian situation in Gaza, which remains grave in the territory despite a US-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas since October.