Ramallah, October 23: 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 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 metres 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.
In addition to collecting local snakes, he has imported the Burmese pythons from a trader in Israel. He knows all the different species by their Hebrew names.
Amwasi used to own around 20 venomous snakes but got rid of them for fear that they might bite one of his children or a neighbour.
Back at home, his children enjoy the pet pythons. Ibrahim (13), is responsible for feeding the three-metre snakes when his father is away.
"I'm not afraid of them at all," he says proudly.Two-year-old Natalie used to be afraid, but now she kisses them and rides on their backs as they slither down the road in front of her house.
"I'm thinking about making her a saddle," Amwasi said.
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