Homeland|Hamas attack
Maya Ahmed, of Palestinian background, and Ethel Salutskij, of Israeli background, who live in Finland, tell what thoughts the Hamas attack and Israel’s countermeasures evoke.
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“This has never happened before”
Ethel Salutskij, lived for long periods in Israel, both daughters have Finnish and Israeli citizenships
Huge concern for own daughter and grandchild. It is At Ethel Salutskij now uppermost in mind.
“Fortunately, my daughter lives on a kibbutz in the northern parts of Israel. There, they can also share the situation in the community,” Salutskij said on Sunday.
Kibbutzim are communal farms and village communities, of which there are a total of about 250 in Israel.
Although the situation in the northern parts of Israel has been relatively calm, the weekend’s rocket attacks in the north raised new fears.
“The whole situation came as such a huge surprise. The numbers of injured and dead are terrible.”
Ethel Salutskij moved from Finland to Israel in 1981. The family’s Jewish roots go back a long way, and the ties to Israel are also strong.
In Israel, Salutskij once had eight years. Later, his two daughters also settled there. The older daughter moved to Israel right after graduation and stayed on that path. The younger lived in the country for 14 years, but moved back to Finland in August.
Both daughters have Finnish and Israeli citizenship.
Salutskij’s emotions have been on the surface since Saturday. Mother and grandmother are very worried.
“The daughter has lived there for a long time and seen several wars. You don’t startle very sensitively anymore, but this has never happened before.”
Hello hopes that Hamas and Israel could sit down at the negotiating table.
“I wish the fighting would stop.”
However, he doesn’t believe that.
“This is such a tough piece for Israel. It will probably lead to severe retaliation when Israel tries to destroy Hamas. They have already warned the civilian population of Gaza.”
“Yes, every country does everything it can to defend its citizens.”
“On the one hand there is joy and on the other hand there is terrible fear”
Maya Ahmed, involved in the activities of the Palestinian Voices in Finland group, parents from Gaza and the West Bank
First the idea was to send a message to loved ones. For family, friends, acquaintances. Ask if they are okay.
Saturday morning from Turku Maya Ahmed woke up to news from the Middle East: the Palestinian extremist group Hamas attacked Israel with thousands of rockets.
“Even though I knew how to expect something to happen at some point, it still came as a surprise,” Ahmed said on Sunday.
Ahmed is involved in the activities of the Palestinian Voices in Finland activist group. It shares information about the Palestinian situation on social media.
Ahmed was born in Jordan. My mother’s parents are from Gaza, my father’s from the West Bank. Ahmed’s family moved to Finland 16 years ago.
The first confusion and after the fear, Ahmed began to feel joy and exultation in the resistance of the Palestinians.
“On some level, this is also good news. That people in Gaza are organized.”
Ahmed has mixed feelings.
“On the one hand, there is joy, and on the other hand, I am terribly afraid of what will come of this. In some way, Israel will respond.”
Ahmed criticizes how the attack by Hamas is being treated.
“Instead of the conflict, we should talk about Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories, apartheid. Israel already started this 75 years ago.”
He compares the situation to the war in Ukraine, where Ukrainians are fighting for their right to self-determination.
“Many are ready to go to the front, knowing that they would die for a good cause,” says Ahmed.
“At the same time, people are afraid for their loved ones. Certainly the Palestinians who live in the Israeli territories will have to suffer.”
Israel has threatened to launch extensive countermeasures against the Gaza Strip. Many of Ahmed’s relatives live there, including his cousin.
“If someone is late and doesn’t send a message back, you have to assess whether they are dead, or whether the internet connection is down.”
Correction 11.10. At 14:49. The story previously incorrectly stated that the conflict between Israel and Palestine began 70 years ago. It started 75 years ago.
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