Abu Eyad al-Sultan, farmer

We’re suffering from the Israeli closure of the Karni Crossing. It’s been a very bad season. When they closed it last month, we could not export our strawberries. When I export my strawberries into Israel, I get 20 shekels a kilo. Here in Gaza, I can only sell a kilo for three shekels. We’ve actually stopped farming our strawberries because it’s barely worth it. I no longer have workers coming to my fields. I can’t pay them. We expect the situation to change with Hamas. They may have a hard time with regard to their foreign policy, but on a local level, I’m hopeful.

We accept a two-state solution and want peace, but the Israelis refuse to compromise on anything. When the Oslo peace process started, the Americans told the Palestinians to recognize Israel, so we did. We stopped the first intifada -- there was no terrorism for many years. But what did we get in return? The Israelis just settled more Palestinian land. I think Hamas will negotiate for our rights, but first they need a guarantee that they will achieve something tangible. I don’t want to go back to my family’s village which we had to leave in 1948. But I want there to be the right of return for Palestinians who live outside of the country, and I want to be compensated for the loss of my family’s lands.