Al-Qalam 
Two Palestinian brothers who live in Durban are worried about the safety of their family in Gaza, who are enduring relentless bombings by Zionist forces, writes Ismail Suder.
Two Gaza brothers, Abdelrahman Shat and younger brother Waseem – based in Durban – are extremely worried for the safety of their elderly parents and extended family in Khan Younis.
Abdelrahman Shat works as a regional coordinator for Islamic Relief SA and his brother runs a weekend food outlet in Westville that specialises in authentic Palestinian dishes.
In an interview, Abdelrahman told Al-Qalam that he was extremely concerned for his family’s safety because ‘no place is safe in Gaza’.
Apart from his parents, he has another married brother and two married sisters and their children in Khan Younis.
“As you’ve heard, no place is safe in the Gaza Strip, so naturally we are highly stressed and fearing for the worst. My biggest hope is to visit my entire family as soon as the war ends,” he said.
In the face of relentless bombings by Zionist forces in the Gaza Strip, Abdelrahman said he sometimes finds it difficult to concentrate on his work.
“I eagerly scan the news about Gaza, and at every opportunity, I call home to check if everyone is okay. Because of the regular broken internet connection, I can barely get two minutes of conversations at a time –but I am grateful for that.”
When asked whether he would like to bring his parents to Durban for safety reasons (when the Rafah Crossing opens), Abdelrahman said his parents had indicated they would never leave Gaza no matter what. “They are attached to the land and their wish is to die in Gaza and be buried there,” he added.
In terms of food, his parents told him they have stocked up on essential items, but shops have run out of most commodities. One of the scarcest items in Gaza is salt, and most families are forced to go without it.
“Taps in Gaza have run dry, so my parents have to buy the water. The water is used especially for bathing and general washing. It gets delivered by donkey carts to our home, but it’s very expensive. It costs about R1000 for 1000 litres. In the past, you could get the same water for just R50. Because there is no electricity throughout the Gaza Strip, my family is forced to cook on an open wood fire,” he added.
When he arrived in South Africa three years ago, Abdelrahman studied business management and after the completion of the course, he joined Islamic Relief SA.
He also assisted his brother Waseem to start a small catering business that gives locals an authentic taste of Palestine. At the moment, the business runs mainly on weekends and public holidays although there are plans to run a full-time operation someday.
Waseem cooks the food himself and takes advance orders. There is an extensive menu of genuine Palestinian foods that include exotic dishes such as Chicken and Lamb Mandi, Chicken tagine, Falafel, Magluba, Musakhan, Hummus, pita bread, and Tabbouleh salad – and they are fairly priced too.
“When we started the small business, the main purpose was to give local people a taste of Palestine… to keep the Palestinian heritage and culture alive in South Africa through our foods,” he added.
*Palfoods operates from a property at 14 Revenge Rd, Berea West, Westville. You may contact Waseem on 0740850197 or follow “Palfood RSA” on Instagram.
