For Palestinian snake charmer, pythons are part of the family
| FEATURE |
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RAMALLAH — A lot of fathers would prefer their two-year-old daughters not to ride a giant Burmese python down the street like a pony — but not Jamal Amwasi of Ramallah.
The 35-year-old Palestinian civil servant is the proud owner of more than a dozen snakes, including several large pythons, all of which live in a shed a few meters (yards) from his home in the occupied West Bank.
“These snakes have become part of the family. Every morning and every night I check up on them and feed them,” he says.
Amwasi stands out in the West Bank, where pets of any kind are rare and snakes are mostly viewed as farm pests. His experience has made him the leading local authority on the reptiles.
As a boy, Amwasi would hunt birds and gazelles in the surrounding hills, a pastime that eventually led him to snakes..... MORE
Source: The Daily Tribune
URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20101022com3.html
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