This is one of the start ups..Sky Geeks, who’s founder had left Gaza and felt he had to return, a video of was posted by T earlier I believe.
He Found A Way Out Of Gaza. Then, Something Drew Him Back.
Altaharwi is the manager of the pre-seed startup accelerator at Gaza Sky Geeks, the improbable Mercy Corps.-funded tech accelerator that operates inside blockaded Gaza. He is a rarity.
Altaharwi not only managed to leave Gaza, eventually earning an MBA in Germany, but he gave up the chance to work at McKinsey, Bain or Accenture -- Big Three firms he was in discussions with -- to come back.
“He could have gone to (one of them) but decided to come back to Gaza to work with us. I still can’t believe it,” says Ryan Sturgill, Gaza Sky Geeks director.
I checked in on the Geeks during these past weeks of
terrible violence. When you see the numbers – more than 115 Palestinians killed and 13,000 wounded -- it’s hard to imagine life going on normally there. The U.N. has said it will be unlivable by 2020. But more than 1.8 million people live in Gaza, and despite the electricity shortages and
the collapsing infrastructure, in some places some people manage to maintain hope against the odds.
Gaza Sky Geeks is one of those places.
Amazingly, it has more than doubled in size since I visited in 2016. In addition to admitting a larger cohort of startups, Gaza Sky Geeks has started a freelance community and a coder program. The budget of $400,000 has swelled to $900,000. I saw an office with a few dozen people. These days, there are more than 120 people there on a daily basis, and all of its programs must turn away applicants.
