In a ring formation, masses of smiling children are standing. They are applauding and dancing at the same time as the sun slowly sets. Some of them have face paint in happy colors.
In the middle, two clowns, complete with red noses and hats, are juggling, performing acrobatic feats, and entertaining. It's a completely ordinary circus, but the circumstances are far from normal.
It's the traveling Free Gaza Circus that's bringing smiles to the children's faces. Outdoors, with sand under their feet and tents in the background, the circus is capturing the attention of both big and small. In a time where much of life in the Gaza Strip is about survival, they want to offer entertainment and a break from the war.
They need to get out of the routine and feel a little joy, says Mohammad Khader, who founded the circus in 2018.
We want to give them a sense of normality, at least for a moment.
A Haven for Children
Then, six years ago, the circus had its base in northern Gaza. In a studio, they taught circus skills to children, organized workshops, and held performances.
Now, in the midst of a raging war, they have instead moved between different tent camps and become a haven for children.
Children need to get away from the conflict and be surrounded by an environment that allows them to grow, says Mohammad Khader.
Since Israel launched its offensive on the Gaza Strip, after Hamas, labeled as a terrorist organization, attacked Israel on October 7 last year, life has been turned upside down for Palestinians in Gaza. According to the Hamas-controlled health ministry, over 40,000 people have been killed and many more have been injured.
According to the UN's humanitarian coordinator for Gaza, nearly two million people – almost the entire population – are on the run in the territory. Many of them have been forced to flee multiple times, after Israel issued evacuation orders in waves and in more and more places in search of Hamas leaders and fighters.
"Gives Us Hope"
The Free Gaza Circus studio in northern Gaza has been destroyed in an Israeli bombing raid, and at least two of the circus members have died. One of them was a gymnastics trainer. Mohammad Khader and the others on the circus only heard about his death a week later. But despite the deaths and the circumstances, the clowns never abandon their mission.
It gives us hope when we travel and perform for the children, says Mohammad Khader.
According to the aid organization International Rescue Committee, approximately 1.2 million children in Gaza are in need of psychosocial help. A need that cannot be met during a raging war. But for the children in Gaza who have lived in a war for almost eleven months, pauses, like the one the circus offers, are important. That's what Hanna Thermaenius, a child psychologist at Save the Children, means.
It's exhausting to be on high alert. War is devastating for children, it scares and stresses them constantly, she says.
A traveling circus or being able to read a book in someone's lap can become pauses where the whole body can relax for a moment through laughter and curiosity.
Less Frightening
But it's not just the audience that the circus brings a moment of joy to. Even for the performers, the circus can be therapeutic.
Absolutely, says Hanna Thermaenius.
Being able to do something for others increases well-being.
She also explains that children – and adults – seem to experience less stress when they have a task during something frightening. For example, being responsible for bringing the stuffed animals to the shelter when the air raid sirens go off.
Having a task is protective. Adults who for a moment don't radiate powerlessness are beneficial.
Hopes for the Future
When TT talks to Mohammad Khader, the circus is in central Gaza, after traveling across the Gaza Strip in search of children's laughter and fleeing from bombs.
In late July, they were forced to put all their activities on hold due to the spread of diseases in Gaza's many tent camps.
But despite the reality being dark in many ways, Mohammad Khader still has hope for the future.
We want to build a new center and start a circus school with activities that can help children heal, he says.
We have plans, we just need to get out of this nightmare first.
On Saturday, October 7, 2023, the terrorist-labeled Palestinian Islamist group Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel. Around 2,500 armed militiamen broke through the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel. Thousands of rockets were fired at Israeli territory.
More than 1,100 people in Israel, mostly unarmed civilians, were killed, shot, and burned to death. Massacres were carried out in kibbutzim and at the music festival Nova, which was held near the border. According to Israel, systematic rapes, torture, and mutilations occurred.
Nearly 250 people, including children, were taken as hostages and brought to Gaza by Hamas.
The day after the deadliest attack on Israel in the country's history, the Israeli government formally declared war on Hamas. In extensive and sustained bombings, entire areas of the Gaza Strip have since been reduced to ruins. Israel has vowed to annihilate Hamas.
Currently, over 100 of the hostages, including around 30 believed to be dead, are thought to remain in Hamas captivity, since some were released and others were killed.
More than 40,000 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip since October 7, according to the Hamas-controlled health ministry. Most are civilians. Israel's blockade of humanitarian aid to Gaza has simultaneously pushed hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to the brink of a humanitarian catastrophe.
More than 40,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have been killed since the start of the war, which followed the terrorist-labeled Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. The figures come from health authorities in Hamas-controlled Gaza.
Among the dead are nearly 300 aid workers, nearly 900 healthcare workers, and 170 journalists/media workers.
Around 1.9 million people are on the run within the Gaza Strip's borders, according to UN estimates. Many of them have been forced to flee multiple times.
Nearly half a million people in the area are estimated to be facing catastrophic levels of food shortages, according to the FN-supported IPC (Integrated Food Security Phase Classification).
One million children are estimated to be in need of psychological and psychosocial support, according to Unicef.
85 percent of all schools/educational institutions have been destroyed entirely or partially, according to the UN agency Ocha. The same applies to 20 out of 36 hospitals.
Source: Ocha: Reported impact snapshot – Gaza Strip, August 21, 2024
