Factory in Gaza Strip prepares to fight virus

GAZA, Middle East－A garment factory in the coastal town of Beit Lahia in Gaza has been producing protective medical suits that meet China's standards.

The owner of the factory, Hassan Olwan, came up with the idea of making the protective suits when the Palestinian government announced precautionary measures to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.

"I felt that I had to fulfill my responsibility toward my community," the 33-year-old father of two told Xinhua.

"China shows the true meaning of social solidarity. Its people presented lessons for us on how we can protect ourselves from the virus."

Olwan praised the Chinese for following their government's instructions over the past months, which is "the most crucial thing that helped them to overcome the disease".

The young Palestinian set out on his initiative by taking advice from Chinese friends.

"Dozens of my Chinese friends provided the standards of production for free," said Olwan. "They want to help the people in the blockaded Gaza Strip."

Every day, Olwan's factory is producing about 500 protective medical suits, selling for around $30 each, "an affordable price for most of the people", he said.

Olwan said doctors, members of the security forces and journalists, among others, can benefit from them.

The small garment factory has provided about 50 jobs for workers who had become unemployed, according to Saed Habob, the former owner of the unit in Beit Lahia.

Habob, who is in his 30s, had closed his factory that once employed more than 500 workers in 2007, after Israel imposed a tight blockade on Gaza Strip.

He said that 50 of his former workers now work in Olwan's factory and earn money for their families, taking in $11 for 12 hours' work.

A Gaza-based committee resisting the Israeli blockade said in January that Israel's embargo had led to a severe humanitarian deterioration in all aspects of life in the coastal enclave.

One of Olwan's workers, Hussein Abu Aqleen, breathed a sigh of relief when he was offered work.

"I work for 12 hours and earn enough money for my family," Abu Aqleen said, adding that he is happy to produce protective suits that help people avoid the virus.

Palestine so far has recorded 60 cases of infection of the novel coronavirus, including two in the Gaza Strip. On March 5, the Palestinian Authority declared a state of emergency for one month after the first COVID-19 case was detected in the district of Bethlehem.