UN builds mud brick homes for homeless Gazans

[Scurrilous]

<snip>

"A Palestinian man made homeless by last winter's Gaza war was the first to receive a U.N.-funded mud brick home Saturday, with U.N. aid officials saying they're reverting to ancient building techniques because Israel won't allow concrete and other construction materials into blockaded Gaza.

The U.N. hopes to build around 120 mud brick homes for dozens of Gaza families in the next few months, said John Ging, head of the U.N. Relief and Works Agency in Gaza. Each house costs about $10,000 and takes three months to build.

Thousands of Gazans were made homeless during Israel's three-week military assault on the Hamas-ruled territory a year ago. The offensive, which also killed hundreds of Palestinians, was meant to punish Gaza's Hamas rulers and put a halt to years of rocket fire from the territory on Israeli border towns.

Gazans have been unable to rebuild because Israel and Egypt continue to enforce a border blockade first imposed in June 2007 after Hamas overran the territory. Gaza residents made homeless by the war have squeezed into homes of relatives, rented apartments or paid black-market prices to fix broken windows and patch up walls.

Some 1,000 Gazans still live in tents, Ging said."

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[Ozymanithrax]

1. Mudbrick is a venarable bulidng substance in the region...

According to biblical myth, that ancestors of the Jews were once specialists in mud brick.

I congratulate the U.N. for returning to its use. It makes sense and is environmentally friendly.

[Scurrilous]

2. Mud home in Gaza:

http://www.ynetnews.com/Ext/App/Thumbnails/CdaThumbnails_OpenWin/1,9788,L-2312023-2312024,00.html?CapField=article_images.name&TabSelect=article_images,images&WhereCls=article_images.image_id=2312024%20and%20article_images.article_id=3818928%20and%20article_images.image_id=images.id&DescField=images.english_credits