Deir al Balah Hirbawi® Kufiya

The coastal plain town of Deir al Balah dates as far back as the 14th Century BCE, where between the Mediterranean Sea and the Sinai Desert, the settlement was created as the final bastion of the Ancient Egyptian empire under King Ramesses II, on the frontline to the land of Canaan. This land, situated in modern day Gaza, is renowned for its orchards of golden date palm trees that decorate its marshy landscape. But behind its beauty and beneath the damp soil, rest the aged roots of a hardy people, and their long history of perseverance for as old as antiquity.

From the Crusaders and the Ayyubids, to the Ottomans and the British, the town of Deir al Balah was always contested for its strategic position between Mesopotamia and Africa. With each cycle of war, it would destroyed by one side or the other, only to be rebuilt anew. Come what may, the town of Deir al Balah would not only survive but flourish, it’s palm trees ever blossoming with fruit.

Today, in the face of ravaging terror and destruction at the hands of the Israeli occupation, the story of Deir al Balah inspires the world. Inevitably, this town will emerge once again from its undying roots, and rise above adversity like a phoenix from ashes.