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<h1 class="gmail-reader-title">‘I Would Give these Children My Eyes’ - Stories from the Carousel</h1>December 30, 2023</div>
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<img src="https://www.palestinechronicle.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Rafah_carousel_ajjr.png" alt="" title="Rafah_carousel_ajjr" class="gmail-moz-reader-block-img" width="440" height="293" style="margin-right: 25px;">
Mahmoud Saleh is a 25-year-old young
man from Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip. (Photo: Mahmoud Ajjour, The
Palestine Chronicle)
<p><strong>By <a href="https://www.palestinechronicle.com/writers/mahmoud-ajjour-gaza" title="Display all articles for Mahmoud Ajjour - Gaza">Mahmoud Ajjour – Gaza</a></strong></p>
<blockquote>
<h3><span>“I have opened this carousel for the children, so that they release some of their energy and psychological stress.”</span></h3>
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<p><span>Mahmoud Saleh is a 25-year-old young man from Rafah, in the
southern Gaza Strip. Like the vast majority of Gazans, he is currently
unemployed. His family is in desperate need of food. </span></p>
<p><span>So, he pitched a carousel in an area crowded with thousands of
Palestinian refugees who have been displaced as a result of the
genocidal Israeli war on Gaza. </span></p>
<p><span>But Mahmoud is torn between the fact that he desperately needs
money for food and the fact that the majority of the families in this
makeshift refugee camp are penniless. </span></p>
<p><span>He resolved his conundrum by simply not asking for money, thus
allowing the parents of the children to pay him or not, depending on
their financial situation. </span></p>
<p><span>Mahmoud Saleh’s carousel initiative may not seem significant in
the larger scheme of things, but in a way, it is people like him who
provide the margins of hope that allow Gaza to survive even during the
time of genocide. </span></p>
<p><span>A Palestine Chronicle reporter, also a displaced refugee in Rafah, spoke with Mahmoud earlier today and this is what he said. </span></p>
<blockquote><p><span>“I have opened this carousel for the children, so
that they release some of their energy and psychological stress. Some of
them come from Bureij (in the central Gaza Strip), others come from
Rafah (in the furthest south).</span></p>
<p><span>“All kinds of children. And those who do not have (cannot pay), I would give them my eyes (I do not charge them).</span></p>
<p><span>“I just want to make them happy. They are suffering in this life and this horrible situation. </span></p>
<p><span>“This is the least I can do, this is all I can do. </span></p>
<p><span>“If there is a man who wants his child to use the carousel (for free), I will give them my eyes. </span></p>
<p><span>“Thank you for everything. </span></p>
<p><span>“May Allah be our protector. </span></p>
<p><span>“All of these terrible things are happening to the children. They are getting destroyed. </span></p>
<p><span>“This is all I can do and thank you for everything.”</span></p></blockquote>
<p><img src="https://www.palestinechronicle.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/WhatsApp-Image-2023-12-29-at-09.32.43.jpeg" alt="" width="440" height="330" style="margin-right: 0px;"> <img src="https://www.palestinechronicle.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/WhatsApp-Image-2023-12-29-at-09.32.44.jpeg" alt="" width="440" height="330" style="margin-right: 0px;"> <img src="https://www.palestinechronicle.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/WhatsApp-Image-2023-12-29-at-09.32.49-1.jpeg" alt="" width="440" height="330" style="margin-right: 0px;"> <img src="https://www.palestinechronicle.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/WhatsApp-Image-2023-12-29-at-09.32.49.jpeg" alt="" width="440" height="330" style="margin-right: 0px;"></p>
<p><em>(Photos and video: Mahmoud Ajjour, Palestine Chronicle)</em></p>
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<p><img src="https://www.palestinechronicle.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/AJJOUR-BIO.png" width="180" height="180" class="gmail-moz-reader-block-img"></p>
<p><span><em>– Mahmoud Ajjour is a Gaza-based photojournalist. He is the Palestine Chronicle’s correspondent in the Gaza Strip.</em></span></p></div>
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<center>(The Palestine Chronicle is a <a href="https://www.palestinechronicle.com/about/">registered</a> 501(c)3 organization, thus, all donations are tax deductible.)</center>
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