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Let not your heart be troubled

October 13, 2009

By pwrdf

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Voices of Hope Pew Bulletin Story
Gaza City

“Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” —John 14:27
“We thought there might have been something we could keep as a memento of 40 years work serving the community, but everything had been obliterated,” says Constantine Dabbagh, executive director of the Department of Service to the Palestine Refugee (DSPR). “I cannot express how I felt. I didn’t cry, but my heart was aching. For humans to have caused this made it especially shocking.”

On Jan. 11, 2009, Israeli missiles struck a health clinic run by the DSPR in Gaza City. Located in the densely populated Shujaiya district, the clinic was destroyed after people living in the flat above received a telephone warning from the Israelis to vacate the premises. The missile strike followed 15 minutes later. The clinic, which was closed at the time due to the security situation, was completely destroyed. The Shujaiya clinic was one of only three serving a population of 80,000, with a special focus on pre- and post-natal care. Within days, a temporary clinic began operating out of borrowed premises, but until a new structure is rebuilt, the women and children in this neighbourhood will feel the loss of this vital part of their health care. Canadian churches have  supported the reconstruction of the Shujaiya clinic, as the people of Gaza reconstruct their hope and courage to pick up the pieces and begin again.
PWRDF supports the DSPR through Action by Churches Together, our global emergency alliance, and KAIROS, our ecumenical coalition of Canadian churches.
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