In Gaza, football offers boys a brief escape from war
In Gaza, football offers boys a brief escape from war
Despite enduring months of displacement, destruction, and endless death, 80 boys in Gaza have found a fleeting sense of normalcy in football.
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In Khan Yunis, a city in the southern region of the besieged Gaza strip, dozens of eager young boys gather for practice on a makeshift pitch set up the sandy shores of the coastal territory.
Despite enduring months of displacement, destruction, and endless death, these resilient boys find a fleeting sense of normalcy in the game they love. Football becomes their escape, offering them a brief respite from the harsh realities they face each day.
Around 80 displaced boys in Gaza aged 9 to 13 are currently participating in these football training sessions in Khan Yunis. The initiative, which was launched by Palestinian football coach Muayad Abu Afash and is supported by the Palestinian Football Association (PFA), aims to nurture emerging football talents by offering them structured training sessions three times a week. It also provides them with brief periods of psychological relief while developing their football skills.
Many displaced children are no longer attending school, with only a few local initiatives offering makeshift education with limited teaching. NGOs often attempt to organize activities but most young children still spend their days on the streets.
This initiative serves as an opportunity to establish new social and sports network for displaced children, contributing to their overall development while preparing the next generation of footballers who may one day represent Palestine on the global stage.
As of Aug. 24, over 40,334 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in the span of 11 months. This includes at least 113 journalists and over 224 humanitarian aid workers. 93,356 Palestinians have been injured as a result of the extensive bombardment of Gaza, while more than 1.7 million Palestinians have been displaced since the war broke out on Oct.7.
Israel’s assault on Gaza has also laid waste to the strip’s infrastructure, razing entire neighbourhoods and destroying agriculture, libraries, universities, and hospitals alike.
Palestinian sports have not been spared in Israel’s ongoing war. All of the city’s football stadiums have been destroyed or partially damaged, while a total of 49 other sports facilities have suffered similar fates.
According to the PFA, more than 343 athletes have been killed since October 7, including 241 football players (67 children and 174 adults). Among the notable names is Hany Al-Masdar, a former player and manager of the Olympic team, and Mohammed Barakat, Gaza’s first centurion of goals and a former national team player known as the “Legend of Khan Younis.”
Israel has destroyed or partially damaged no less than 28 football facilities in Palestine since the start of the war, 22 in Gaza and six in the West Bank. These include all of Gaza’s professional football stadiums, as well as the PFA headquarters, which was also targeted by Israeli airstrikes.
Al Yarmouk Stadium—one of the oldest sports facilities in Gaza—was transformed into a makeshift internment camp for Palestinian detainees, where dozens of men, women and children were rounded up, stripped down to their underwear, and blindfolded while Israeli soldiers posed for photos.
Even amid the desolation of Palestinian football, the country’s national team made history earlier this year when they reached the final round of qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The team is next scheduled to face South Korea on Sep. 5, 2024.
And yet, the ongoing youth training sessions are not focused on building professional teams but on providing a source of comfort in the midst of ongoing suffering.
“We are living a hard life right now,” Amar Hassan, one of the boys participating in the football initiative said. “Nevertheless, we are here playing football in spite of this difficult life.”
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