For those who have heard about the recent ALS ‘ice bucket challenges’, there is also the rubble bucket challenge’ which was launched in Gaza amidst ongoing tensions between Israel and Hamas in solidarity with those who have lost their homes. Jordanian comedian Mohammed Darwaza started this trend last Friday, and was made popular by journalist Ayman al Aloul over the weekend.
This was done in order to raise awareness of the desperate conditions facing many living in the conflict-stricken territory. But rather than tip buckets of water – a precious resource in the Gaza Strip – participants are filmed tipping rubble out of a bucket over their heads.
Ayman al Aloul, the Palestinian journalist who posted the first Rubble Bucket Challenge said: ‘I have to do something and to send a message all over the world about Gaza.’
In the video, filmed on a Gaza street destroyed by bombs, Aloul said that he liked the idea of the Ice Bucket Challenge, but that he couldn’t justify using water. He said: ‘The use of water is more important than to empty over our heads. And even if the water is available it is difficult to freeze it.
Since its launch on Friday, the Rubble Bucket Challenge Facebook page has garnered thousands of ‘likes’ and shared videos of participants. On the page, activists explain their aim to “raise awareness about the war on Gaza where people are bombed inside their homes. All people are invited to accept the challenge.”
