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No sanitizers, fresh food or distance in some of Gaza's quarantine centers

Gaza quarantine centers, which are mostly converted from schools and hotels, lack the basic necessities such as fresh food and sanitation that are necessary to survive the coronavirus pandemic.

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Palestinian cooks prepare food for a coronavirus quarantine center in Gaza City, Gaza, April 2, 2020. — MOHAMMED ABED/AFP via Getty Images

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Life in the Gaza Strip's quarantine centers is tense, confrontational and lacking in basic needs.

“A week into our arrival, I complained to the Independent Commission for Human Rights about the lack of vegetables and fruits, so they started providing us with two pieces of vegetables or two pieces of fruits with lunch, but there are still no herbal drinks, supplements or vitamins,” 31-year-old freelance journalist Sahar al-Dahleez, who has been in quarantine since March 25, told Al-Monitor. Dahleez was placed in the Kuwait Secondary School for Girls in the Jabalia governorate north of the Gaza Strip after she entered the country through the Erez crossing between Israel and northern Gaza. She spoke to Al-Monitor on April 7 — her ninth day in quarantine.

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