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Source: https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-785234
We Were All Lied To - Gaza Was a Modern, Developed Place before Oct. 7
(Jerusalem Post) Roi Yanovsky - I was recently released from reserve duty in Gaza after serving 100 days in the IDF. I feel I have to share the things I saw there. For years, we've heard about how terrible life is for the poor, oppressed Gazans, how it is an open-air prison. But now, having experienced it myself, I can confidently tell you that we were lied to. Gaza has been depicted as a backwards, "densely populated" area that's been under Israeli "siege" for years. But pre-war Gaza City was modern, beautiful, and developed - with large, furnished houses, wide avenues, public areas, a promenade, and parks. It looked much better than any other Arab city "from the river to the sea." Gaza City reminds me more of Tel Aviv than the awful slums that some people try to make it out to be. And Gaza is far from being the "most densely populated area in the world." If this is how a city looks after two decades of "siege," then I want to be sieged. The houses in Gaza were full of goods and food from across the Middle East. They had modern furniture, appliances, and pretty much any up-to-date consumer product and electronics you can imagine. There are also high-end mansions that could easily have been in Los Angeles or Beverly Hills. There was no lack of wealth in Gaza. I realize now that the optimistic notion that "if only Gazans had the chance for a better life, they would not be fighting Israel," is irrelevant for Gaza. Many of them had everything a normal person in the West strives for, yet Hamas still executed their Oct. 7 massacre. The most common thing I saw inside the houses was a map of the State of Israel, with the heading "Map of Palestine." There is no mention of any Israeli city. The goal of eradicating Israel was not hidden or played down, it was everywhere.