In the Gaza Strip there are two cemeteries that contain the remains of British soldiers, most of whom died fighting in World War One, a few of whom died in World War Two.
Owned by the UK-based Commonwealth War Graves Commission, they are known locally as the British graveyards, and are regarded as a major cultural and archaeological site in the Palestinian enclave.
Adorned by bushes and surrounded by tall cypress trees and a low wall against which various flowers are in bloom in a calm atmosphere, hundreds of Gazans have for years visited them to relax.
The Gaza War Cemetery lies in al-Tuffah neighbourhood in the north of Gaza. It has 3,217 graves, of which 781 are unidentified. Second World War burials number 210. There are 30 post-war burials and 234 war graves of other nationalities.
The other is located in the north of Deir al-Balah, in the area of al-Zwayda. Inside it lie 724 soldiers, all of them British. ….more