Fadel al-Utol, 43, is an archaeologist and restoration specialist working in Gaza.
Tell me a little about your archaeological work and career in Gaza.
I am a specialist in archaeological restoration and excavation. I began my work in 1995 with the École Biblique as part of an agreement between France and the Palestinian National Authority. I have also worked with Unesco and the British Council on projects to uncover and preserve historical sites.
What was the status of your work and projects when the war started?
I was working for an organisation that protects heritage in areas of conflict that mentors, trains and employs graduates in archaeology from universities in Gaza. We train them for three months and then choose the best. We would target about 50 students, then according to our budget, we would employ up to 20 of them. It was a British Council operation in conjunction with the International Alliance for the Protection of Heritage in Conflict Areas (Aliph Foundation). And since 2017, I have been with First Aid Vision 2030, which supports archaeological fieldwork. The archaeological sector unfortunately did not have a lot of domestic support in Gaza. We had a government department, but as you can imagine, archaeology was not going to be more important than health or education. So the government leaned on international support.
