GAZA, (PIC)
The decision of the doctors, Tha’ir Dabbabesh and Asmaa Jabr, to get married was not easy due to the ongoing Israeli war for the past five months and the imposed siege on the Gaza Strip, as well as the Israeli army’s bombardment of the expected wedding home.
However, the long duration of the war, the separation of families, and the absence of the basic necessities of life forced the couple to choose between surrendering or resisting and continuing with their lives and starting a family.
Indeed, the determination of the couple was stronger than the deadly war machine. They decided to get married and continue their lives, starting with a small and simple ceremony inside Al-Shifa Medical Complex in the western part of Gaza City, amidst their colleagues who are struggling to provide medical services after the complete deterioration of the enclave’s health sector due to the war.
The couple held the wedding without the bride wearing her white dress she had always dreamed of, and without their relatives accompanying her on that special day. The joy was diminished due to the absence of family and friends and the absence of real celebration ceremonies.
The couple had hoped that their parents and siblings would be present at the wedding ceremony, as well as hosting a large feast, as is customary for Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, which is suffering from a real famine due to the tight Israeli blockade.
The couple had previously officially married in July 2023, and their wedding ceremony was scheduled for November 15th last year, but the continuation of the war prevented that.
The couple chose November 15th as the date for their wedding ceremony to coincide with the anniversary of the late Palestinian President Yasser Arafat’s declaration of the Declaration of Independence, in which he announced the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital.
One of the doctors who announced their marriage during the celebration said, “Despite the suffering, the bombings, the martyrs, and the wounded, we congratulate the marriage of the Palestinians, Tha’ir Dabbabesh and Asmaa Jabr.”
He added, “Despite the bombing of the couple’s house during the war, they insisted on the wedding that was scheduled to take place on November 15th, the day of the announcement of Palestine’s independence, but the continuation of the war prevented that.”
He pointed out that “most of the bride’s family members are displaced in the southern areas of the Gaza Strip and were unable to attend the wedding ceremony.”
The doctor wished for the war to end as soon as possible and for the couple to enjoy a happy married life.
On November 15th of each year, Palestinians commemorate the anniversary of the declaration of the Palestinian Declaration of Independence before the National Council, which was held in Algeria in 1988.
Despite the declaration of independence, the Israeli occupation of Palestine since 1948 still persists, as Israel controls 85% of the historical Palestinian territory, according to official Palestinian statistics.
Since October 7th, 2023, Israel has been waging a brutal aggression on the Gaza Strip, resulting in the deaths of tens of thousands of civilian martyrs, most of whom are children and women, and causing a humanitarian catastrophe and massive destruction of infrastructure.
