Al Qarya as Suwaydiya (), known as ''Swedish village'', was a village situated near

Egypt–Gaza border The Egypt–Palestine border, also called Egypt–Gaza border, is the long border between Egypt and the Gaza Strip. There is a buffer zone along the border which is about long. The Rafah Border Crossing is the only crossing point between Eg ...

in the

Rafah Governorate The Rafah Governorate () is a Governorates of Palestine, Governorate of Palestine in the southernmost portion of the Gaza Strip. Its district capital or ''muhfaza'' is the city of Rafah located on the border with Egypt. According to the Palest ...

Gaza Strip The Gaza Strip, also known simply as Gaza, is a small territory located on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea; it is the smaller of the two Palestinian territories, the other being the West Bank, that make up the State of Palestine. I ...

. The village was described as "forgotten" due to the lack of basic services. It was destroyed during the

Rafah offensive On 6 May 2024, Israel began a military offensive in and around the city of Rafah as part of Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip (2023–present), its invasion of the Gaza Strip during the Gaza war. In early May, as ceasefire negotiations stal ...

as part of the

Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip The Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip is a major part of the Gaza war. Starting on 7 October 2023, immediately after the October 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel, Hamas-led attack on Israel, Israel began bombing of the Gaza Strip, bombing the Ga ...

in 2024.

History

Al Qarya as Suwaydiya was founded in 1965 with Swedish and international troops' assistance for the Palestinian refugees who were compelled to move from their homes in 1948. In 1982, several houses in the village were razed to expand the border strip. In 1997, the village had population of 568. Al Qarya as Suwaydiya was proposed to be demolished because of the Al-Rashid road construction plan, which will pass the village, yet the villagers rejected that proposal. The village was destroyed during the

as part of the

in 2024.

Economy

The villagers heavily depended on the fishing sector. However, the residents endured economic hardship from 2007 due to the

blockade of the Gaza Strip The restrictions on movement and goods in Gaza imposed by Israel date to the early 1990s. After Hamas took over in 2007, Israel significantly intensified existing movement restrictions and imposed a complete blockade on the movement of good ...

and fishing prohibition imposed by Israel. Furthermore, the high level of marine pollution undermined the fishing industry in the village. Due to the prohibition, many of the villagers were unemployed or worked in the agricultural sector.

Electricity

The village received electricity from the generator four hours daily in the evening after the

Israeli disengagement from Gaza In 2005, Israel disengaged from the Gaza Strip by dismantling all 21 Israeli settlements there. As part of this process, four Israeli settlements in the West Bank were dismantled as well. The disengagement was executed unilaterally: Israeli a ...

, with the Hamas government later extending the electricity network to it.

References

2024 disestablishments in Palestine Former populated places in Palestine Villages in the Gaza Strip Municipalities of Palestine Populated places established in 1965 Populated places disestablished in 2024 Populated places destroyed during wars Rafah offensive Forcibly depopulated communities of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict {{Palestine-geo-stub