Stability ‘returning to Red Sea’

JABALIA, Gaza: The rats and dogs scavenging amid the ruins of her neighborhood in northern Gaza make Manal Al-Harsh’s return to her wrecked home even more miserable.
Despite the respite from Israeli bombardments that a ceasefire has brought, she still fears for her family’s security. They have trouble sleeping at night.
Even trying to find her children’s clothes amid the rubble of their house in Jabalia is a forlorn task.
Al-Harsh, 36, has erected a makeshift tent from salvaged blankets to provide shelter for her and her children.
“We are staying here, but we are afraid of rats and everything around us. There are dogs. There is no place to settle. We have children. It is difficult,” Harsh, 36, said as she stepped cautiously over the debris.
She said she had returned from the south of the Palestinian enclave when the ceasefire took effect but found her house destroyed.
Much of the rest of Gaza City also lies in ruins after 15 months of fighting and waves of Israeli airstrikes and artillery barrages that left it a shell of the bustling urban center it was before the war.
“We are practically sleeping here, but we don’t sleep. We are afraid someone might come upon us. We are sleeping and scared,” she said.
“I want to retrieve some clothes for the children to wear. We came with nothing. Life here is expensive, and there is no money to buy anything.”
Many of those returning, often laden with what personal possessions they still have after months of being moved around as the battlegrounds shifted, had trekked 20 km (12 miles) or more along the coastal highway north.
Like many displaced Palestinians, Al-Harsh faces uncertainty as she tries to salvage what remains. She had managed to pick some clothes from the rubble but they were in a sorry state.
“It’s all torn. Nothing is good. As much as we do, as much as we retrieve, it is all stones,” she said.
“Death is better,” Al-Harsh said, her voice heavy with despair.

ISTANBUL: Police in Turkiye fired tear gas to disperse a group of protesters who clashed with officers on Friday outside an Istanbul courthouse while rallying in support of the city’s mayor, who was called to give testimony in two new legal probes against him.
Thousands of supporters gathered outside the Caglayan courthouse to protest the legal actions against Ekrem Imamoglu, a potential future leader of Turkiye’s main opposition, the Republican People’s Party, or CHP.
Imamoglu testified on Friday before prosecutors for two hours in connection with comments he made about a chief prosecutor and a court expert.
Critics argue that the probes were part of an effort to remove Imamoglu from the political scene.

The politician has already been convicted of charges of insulting members of Turkiye’s Supreme Electoral Council and faces a political ban if a high court upholds his conviction in 2022.
He is also on trial on charges involving the alleged rigging of bids in a tender dating back to 2015.
Tensions escalated on Friday when riot police blocked a CHP bus from approaching the courthouse.
The move led to clashes between the protesters and the police, who responded with tear gas.
It was not clear if any arrests were made. Imamoglu later addressed the crowds from the top of the bus at another location.
“Today’s issue is ... an issue of seeking rights and justice,” the mayor said.
“Unfortunately, today’s issue stems from a conspiracy against Istanbul.”
Imamoglu, 53, was first elected to lead Istanbul in March 2019.
His win was a historic blow to Justice and Development Party, which had controlled Istanbul for a quarter-century.
The party pushed to void the municipal election results, alleging irregularities in the city of 16 million.
The challenge resulted in a repeat of the election a few months later, which Imamoglu also won.
Imamoglu was reelected mayor of Turkiye’s largest city last year.