Settlers in the Gaza Strip

Gush Katif is a complex of settlements in the south part of Gaza Strip, on the land seized by Israel after the 1967 war. Politically, it undermines the Israelo-palestinian conflict. But most of all, socially, it provides a context of living full of paradoxes. For the palestinians, this is the most scandalous symbol of illegal occupation. For the jewish settlers, the most evident triumph of sionism: a desertous land turned into a community. Seen from the outside, the area is guarded as a high security prison. Electric wire-fence, tanks and armoured vehicles, dozens of checkpoints, thousands of soldiers. Seen from the inside, landscapes and daily life in these jewish communities remind of life in an american suburb. Jewish settlers and palestinian villagers live side by side, intercepted by the IDF in this strange geopolitical status quo. > Neve Dekalim is a “regional urban center” of 2.300 people, mostly populated by observant jews. > Between the Gush Katif settlements and the sea, lies the Mawasi area, a palestinian populated strip of land, cut-off from the rest of the palestinian territory. > Lastly, there is the “Song of the Sea” community, a line of caravan houses lying on the beach, populated by non-observant jews. In their backyard, there is a long fenced wall and a military post that are supposed to protect the settlers from the Mawasi palestinian area. The story covers everyday life of people with different backgrounds: A french middle-class family of 3 children that moved 2 years ago in Neve Dekalim from Nice. An ex-commando of the IDF that lives by the beach with the lifestyle of a hippy. An israeli young woman that immigrated in a beach house seeking a better standard of life. Palestinian fishermen, confined to live and work in a narrow slice of land. Thai workers working in the settlers’ greenhouse or playing a traditional ball game during their leisure time… Soldiers that protect civilians, civilians that carry guns to protect themselves, local children and yeshiva students from Jerusalem, studying or enjoying at the local pizzeria.