Jaffa, Israel – Johny Saba, an amiable 58-year-old fisherman, longs for all times within the historic Mediterranean port to return to the way it was earlier than the battle.
He hoists his younger youngster up into his arms as a colleague repairs a rickety picket fishing boat within the stillness of the night.
The shipyard is calm; solely a handful of individuals come and go. Behind Johny, a tattooed, stocky, bald fisherman fixes a tangle of fishing internet; he listens to no music, as an alternative, freed from distractions, he’s misplaced in his ideas as he methodically threads the meshed cloth by means of his palms.
“Before the war, there was no problem here; Jews and [Palestinians] could work together,” Johny says earlier than letting out a sigh.
On the weekends, he says, hundreds of individuals would come to purchase contemporary fish from native household companies that had typically existed for generations.
He paints an image of a group of fishermen – Christians, Jews and Muslims co-existing, working alongside the sun-drenched Mediterranean coast, certain collectively by the toil and expertise of their commerce somewhat than separated from each other by the tensions and divisions that existed between their communities.
“Here we are all like brothers; If everywhere was like Jaffa, it would be paradise,” he displays.
https://www.aljazeera.com/features/longform/2023/12/7/the-fishermen-of-jaffa-fear-replaces-harmony-amid-israel-gaza-war?traffic_source=rss
