Gaza-Boat Builder/Displacement
Rafah, Gaza Strip - Recent (CGTN - No access Chinese mainland)
1. Various of wrecked ship near coast
2. Various of Atiya Mustafa Miqdad, ship builder, walking along coast
3. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Atiya Mustafa Miqdad, ship builder (starting with shot 2/ending with shot 4):
"Before the Oct 7 war, I used to do the job of building new boats. We headed out early in the morning to go to work, and came home to the sound of rockets. After five days, we were displaced to Rafah. Some fishermen who had old and small boats went down to the sea to fish, and there were also young guys on foam boats who went down to the sea to fish. From that point, I decided to make a small fishing boat with paddles."
4. Various of fishermen in water, boat
5. Various of people fishing
6. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Atiya Mustafa Miqdad, ship builder (starting with shot 5/partially overlaid with shot 7/ending with shot 8):
"During this period, the materials that used to be available, such as wood and other things, people started using them for making tents for the displaced. So wood became very scarce in the area, and fiber was also limited and barely available. So we were forced to work differently: I started collecting broken small boats, placing the pieces inside the mold, fixing them with screws, welding them together, and then rehabilitating them again, bringing them back as new boats."
++SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++
7. Various of tents
++SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++
8. Various of Miqdad building boat
9. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Atiya Mustafa Miqdad, ship builder (starting with shot 8/partially overlaid with shot 10):
"Before the war, I had built a tourist boat, and I was engaged in tourism. I had nine molds for building boats and the boat parts that carry small and large engines for the small boats with two horse-power engine. And I had plenty of work, thank God. But the whole area was burned, and the molds broke and were destroyed, including boats that were still under construction and got damaged because of the war."
++SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++
10. Various of Miqdad building boat
++SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++
11. Wrecked boat
12. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Atiya Mustafa Miqdad, ship builder (starting with shot 11/ending with shot 13):
"I wish what I'm experiencing is just a bad dream, because many people were humiliated and suffered a lot. This war must stop."
13. People peddling on boat
Displaced from Al-Shati' Camp in northern Gaza Strip, 38-year-old Palestinian boat carpenter Atiya Mustafa Miqdad is struggling to preserve his livelihood amid severe shortages caused by an ongoing brutal conflict in the Middle East.
Miqdad, now living in Rafah after being forced to flee since the conflict between Hamas and Israel erupted on Oct 7, 2023, recalled how dramatically his life and work had changed.
"Before the Oct 7 war, I used to do the job of building new boats. We headed out early in the morning to go to work, and came home to the sound of rockets. After five days, we were displaced to Rafah. Some fishermen who had old and small boats went down to the sea to fish, and there were also young guys on foam boats who went down to the sea to fish. From that point, I decided to make a small fishing boat with paddles," said Miqdad.
However, worsening shortages have made even basic craftsmanship extremely difficult. Materials once readily available are now diverted to meet the urgent need of displaced families.
"During this period, the materials that used to be available, such as wood and other things, people started using them for making tents for the displaced. So wood became very scarce in the area, and fiber was also limited and barely available. So we were forced to work differently: I started collecting broken small boats, placing the pieces inside the mold, fixing them with screws, welding them together, and then rehabilitating them again, bringing them back as new boats," he said.
To help fishermen who could no longer afford proper building materials, Miqdad began seeking wood from unlikely sources.
He explained that a single boat requires wood costing between 4,000 and 5,000 shekels (about between 1,234 and 1,545 U.S. dollars). He used to ask fishermen whether they had damaged wooden door frames that could be repurposed, saying he would clean and restore the old wood to ease their financial burden.
Before the conflict intensified, Miqdad had been contributing to Gaza's modest tourism sector by building leisure vessels and investing in specialized molds and parts.
"Before the war, I had built a tourist boat, and I was engaged in tourism. I had nine molds for building boats and the boat parts that carry small and large engines for the small boats with two horse-power engine. And I had plenty of work, thank God. But the whole area was burned, and the molds broke and were destroyed, including boats that were still under construction and got damaged because of the war," he said.
Looking ahead, he expressed a wish shared by local Gaza residents who are suffering enduring hardship across the enclave.
"I wish what I'm experiencing is just a bad dream, because many people were humiliated and suffered a lot. This war must stop," said Miqdad.
Gaza-Boat Builder/Displacement
Dateline : Recent
Location : Gaza Strip
Duration : 2'49
Rafah, Gaza Strip - Recent (CGTN - No access Chinese mainland)
1. Various of wrecked ship near coast
2. Various of Atiya Mustafa Miqdad, ship builder, walking along coast
3. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Atiya Mustafa Miqdad, ship builder (starting with shot 2/ending with shot 4):
"Before the Oct 7 war, I used to do the job of building new boats. We headed out early in the morning to go to work, and came home to the sound of rockets. After five days, we were displaced to Rafah. Some fishermen who had old and small boats went down to the sea to fish, and there were also young guys on foam boats who went down to the sea to fish. From that point, I decided to make a small fishing boat with paddles."
4. Various of fishermen in water, boat
5. Various of people fishing
6. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Atiya Mustafa Miqdad, ship builder (starting with shot 5/partially overlaid with shot 7/ending with shot 8):
"During this period, the materials that used to be available, such as wood and other things, people started using them for making tents for the displaced. So wood became very scarce in the area, and fiber was also limited and barely available. So we were forced to work differently: I started collecting broken small boats, placing the pieces inside the mold, fixing them with screws, welding them together, and then rehabilitating them again, bringing them back as new boats."
++SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++
7. Various of tents
++SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++
8. Various of Miqdad building boat
9. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Atiya Mustafa Miqdad, ship builder (starting with shot 8/partially overlaid with shot 10):
"Before the war, I had built a tourist boat, and I was engaged in tourism. I had nine molds for building boats and the boat parts that carry small and large engines for the small boats with two horse-power engine. And I had plenty of work, thank God. But the whole area was burned, and the molds broke and were destroyed, including boats that were still under construction and got damaged because of the war."
++SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++
10. Various of Miqdad building boat
++SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++
11. Wrecked boat
12. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Atiya Mustafa Miqdad, ship builder (starting with shot 11/ending with shot 13):
"I wish what I'm experiencing is just a bad dream, because many people were humiliated and suffered a lot. This war must stop."
13. People peddling on boat
Displaced from Al-Shati' Camp in northern Gaza Strip, 38-year-old Palestinian boat carpenter Atiya Mustafa Miqdad is struggling to preserve his livelihood amid severe shortages caused by an ongoing brutal conflict in the Middle East.
Miqdad, now living in Rafah after being forced to flee since the conflict between Hamas and Israel erupted on Oct 7, 2023, recalled how dramatically his life and work had changed.
"Before the Oct 7 war, I used to do the job of building new boats. We headed out early in the morning to go to work, and came home to the sound of rockets. After five days, we were displaced to Rafah. Some fishermen who had old and small boats went down to the sea to fish, and there were also young guys on foam boats who went down to the sea to fish. From that point, I decided to make a small fishing boat with paddles," said Miqdad.
However, worsening shortages have made even basic craftsmanship extremely difficult. Materials once readily available are now diverted to meet the urgent need of displaced families.
"During this period, the materials that used to be available, such as wood and other things, people started using them for making tents for the displaced. So wood became very scarce in the area, and fiber was also limited and barely available. So we were forced to work differently: I started collecting broken small boats, placing the pieces inside the mold, fixing them with screws, welding them together, and then rehabilitating them again, bringing them back as new boats," he said.
To help fishermen who could no longer afford proper building materials, Miqdad began seeking wood from unlikely sources.
He explained that a single boat requires wood costing between 4,000 and 5,000 shekels (about between 1,234 and 1,545 U.S. dollars). He used to ask fishermen whether they had damaged wooden door frames that could be repurposed, saying he would clean and restore the old wood to ease their financial burden.
Before the conflict intensified, Miqdad had been contributing to Gaza's modest tourism sector by building leisure vessels and investing in specialized molds and parts.
"Before the war, I had built a tourist boat, and I was engaged in tourism. I had nine molds for building boats and the boat parts that carry small and large engines for the small boats with two horse-power engine. And I had plenty of work, thank God. But the whole area was burned, and the molds broke and were destroyed, including boats that were still under construction and got damaged because of the war," he said.
Looking ahead, he expressed a wish shared by local Gaza residents who are suffering enduring hardship across the enclave.
"I wish what I'm experiencing is just a bad dream, because many people were humiliated and suffered a lot. This war must stop," said Miqdad.
ID : 8456390
Published : 2025-12-07 17:17
Last Modified : 2025-12-07 20:51:18
Source : China Global Television Network (CGTN)
Restrictions : No access Chinese mainland
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