In Gaza, football means life amid Israel’s continuing war
Al Jazeera
The people of Gaza have kept alive their love for football amid displacement, destruction and communications blackouts.
Deir el-Balah, Gaza – For Hamza El Outy, a Real Madrid fan, Champions League football nights have always been special.
The 20-year-old medical student grew up following the Spanish club as they reigned over European football in the past decade, winning it five times to extend their record to 14 titles.
In November, El Outy and his family moved further west towards the coastline in the war-torn Gaza Strip after miraculously surviving an Israeli rocket attack next to their house in Deir el-Balah, which was largely designated as a safe area in the initial weeks of the war.
The date palm-lined city has become a site of relentless air strikes. The attacks, mainly targeting the western part of the city, have caused a great deal of damage and destruction to multiple homes as well as public facilities.
“My house is a pile of rubble, where all my football memories lay buried,” El Outy says, holding back his tears.
