On the beat of drums and the playing of the flute, young men dance in one of the alleys of the Rimal neighborhood near the Gaza beach, celebrating the wedding of their friend in an unusually brief ceremony during the Covid-19 pandemic, which reduced the expenses of young people in the Strip on marriage.

During the early afternoon hours, a vehicle carrying two newlyweds, in a small convoy containing cars decorated with flowers, arrives at the home of a neighbor, where about 50 chairs have been placed without adhering to the preventive measures imposed by the Ministry of Health in Gaza due to the emerging Corona virus.

The groom, Muhammad Ahmad Ashour, a household goods seller on a small rug at the age of 24, made sure to appear in the most beautiful way to celebrate his wedding from his bride, to the sound of chants and the scattering of flowers.

When the groom began dancing in front of the house, the sound of the oboe and drums rose and a few of his relatives and friends gathered around him to participate in the dances without wearing masks, while women looked out from the windows and scattered roses at the car in which the veiled bride in the studded white dress was present.

And about 100 meters away, luxurious wedding halls dot the coastal front.

However, these night party venues in Gaza are currently closed due to anti-COVID-19 measures.

Ashour, who lives in a small room in his mother's apartment, expresses "imperfect" joy because he was unable to hold his wedding in a wedding hall.

He says, "I am not satisfied that my marriage ceremony is at the neighbor’s house for one hour."

However, the groom, who has a small business selling children's clothes in Gaza, believes that in Corona’s circumstances there is a "good opportunity" to hold a modest wedding for her son "to save much of the wedding expenses" usual in the impoverished Gaza Strip.

He explains, "My mother is happy. She paid the costs of marriage. There is no lounge, no lunch, no band, nor a hairdresser's fee."

The cost of weddings in the Gaza Strip, on average, ranges between 3 and 5 thousand dollars, according to specialists.

Cheaper costs

In the city of Jabalia, in the northern Gaza Strip, another wedding took place a few days later for Ahmed Omar Khallah, a postman at the age of 28, and his wife Zahra Khallah, 19 years old.

With the increase in the number of new Corona patients in the Gaza Strip, the bride who has just finished her hairstyle says that she would have preferred if her wedding was held in a large hall with guests, such as her sisters and her friends.

"I am happy. Finally, I will hold the marriage ceremony after a year-and-a-half-year engagement, and postpone the wedding several times due to the groom's difficult financial situation, and due to Corona," Zahraa says with a smile on her mother's side.

And her groom - who wore a black suit and a red tie, while waiting in front of the hairdresser's door - indicated that the costs of his wedding ceremony are "much cheaper" in light of the pandemic.

The postman has a college degree but is unemployed.

Wedding costs are much lower under the pandemic (French)

Hope for a better tomorrow

Usually, weddings in the Strip begin after dark, and women are often separated from men, and singing and dancing continue until dawn, according to an AFP report.

But due to the night curfew, brides are forced to hold their weddings during the day, and invitees leave at sunset.

Fadwa Al-Lulu, who owns a chain of beauty and hairdressing salons, says, "Weddings are becoming fewer and fewer due to Corona."

This new reality prompted her to change working hours to accommodate the new life routine.

She added, "We start work at five in the morning until we finish preparing the brides, because the wedding ceremony starts early."

"We take into account safety measures, cleansers, sterilization, and temperature measurements for customers to avoid closing the salon (from the Ministry of Interior), because that will constitute an additional loss for us," the cosmetician explains, while wearing a mask and gloves.

And it became clear that the volume of demand for the rental of wedding dresses, dyes, hairdressing and cosmetics decreased, according to Lulu, who explains that "the hairstyle is limited to the bride without her relatives, friends and relatives of the groom, as we used to before Corona."

The price of renting the bride's dress ranges from 200 shekels ($ 60) to 400 shekels ($ 120), according to Lulu.

About two million people live in the Gaza Strip, which has been besieged by Israel for 13 years, half of them below the poverty line (less than $ 5 a day).

The sector also suffers from high unemployment, which is close to 50% in general, and constitutes about 65% of the youth group, which is reflected in a decline in the demand for marriage.

The groom Khalla - who used to wear a muzzle - returns in front of the salon that he intended to accompany his bride, saying, "There is no work, no money, no home, what can young people do, get married and have hope that tomorrow will be better."

Health officials confirm that the new Corona virus is spreading rapidly in Gaza, with warnings of "the situation out of control."