Tue Dec 24 11:23:50 UTC 2024: ## Gaza Baker Finds Joy Amidst Ruins, Baking Christmas Cookies in War-Torn Camp

**Khan Younis, Gaza Strip** – Amidst the devastation of the ongoing conflict in Gaza, Mayess Hamid, 31, finds solace and purpose in baking Christmas cookies. Forced from her home and job at a bakery destroyed during the war, Hamid now operates from a makeshift kitchen in a displacement camp, utilizing limited resources and ingenuity.

Hamid, displaced nine times since the beginning of the war, has been baking for about a decade. The Israeli blockade severely restricts the entry of essential goods, including ingredients, forcing Hamid to improvise. She substitutes unavailable materials like ready-made sugar paste with a mixture of liquid cheese and powdered sugar, and hand-cuts cookie shapes using homemade stencils due to a lack of cookie cutters. Even the oven is a communal clay oven shared by the entire camp.

Despite the immense challenges, Hamid’s passion remains unwavering. “The war may have taken my home and life as I knew it, but not my passion for decorating and attention to detail,” she says, decorating her cookies in her small tent. She bakes the cookies to share with the children in her camp, bringing a touch of festive cheer to their otherwise bleak reality.

However, the joy is bittersweet. “We try to smile, but our wounds run deep,” Hamid explains, expressing the collective sorrow of a community enduring a second year of war and devastation. Her Christmas wish is simple yet profound: “Just let the war stop. Let the killing and destruction end so we can live in peace with our children.” Hamid’s story highlights the resilience of the Gazan people and their unwavering hope for peace amidst unimaginable hardship.

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