UN schools

Elizabeth Tanboura stands with three of her daughters: Sundos, Malak, and Marwa (right), in front of their destroyed home in Beit Lahiya, Gaza Strip, March 19, 2015. Elizabth's husband, Radad, and their children Ahmed (15) and Amna (13), were killed during an Israeli attack on August 25, 2014. Two other boys survived because they were not in the house at the time of the attack.

In war, there is no safe place for Gaza’s children

A new report details the harrowing reality for Gaza’s children during last summer’s assault. There came a point early on during last summer’s Gaza war when it seemed we reached a nadir. Four children, all under the age of 12, were killed by an Israeli naval attack while playing soccer on a beach. The boys were…

By Natasha Soffer-Roth April 21, 2015

Palestinian school students stand in a destroyed classroom in the damaged Sobhi Abu Karsh Basic school in a destroyed quarter of the Shujayea neighborood, Gaza city, September 15, 2014. The school year has started with a three-week delay, due to the latest Israeli offensive during which 29 schools have been totally destroyed, and around 190 damaged. The first weeks are dedicated to recreational activities to help children to overcome the trauma due the the seven-week Israeli military offensive. 2,131 Palestinians were killed, including 501 children, and an estimated 18,000 housing units have been either destroyed or severely damaged, leaving more than 108,000 people homeless.

PHOTOS: Amid rubble and trauma, Gaza goes back to school

With displaced families still living in some schools, and despite severe damage to classrooms, Gaza’s children return to school after a summer of Israeli bombardment. Photos by: Anne Paq and Basel Yazouri/Activestills.org Text by: Ryan Rodrick Beiler Despite damaged classrooms and destroyed schools, Gaza’s school year began this week after delays due to the recent…

By Activestills September 18, 2014

Palestinian woman walks between the ruins of Beit Hanoun, North Gaza Strip, August 12, 2014. (Basel Yazouri/Activestills.org)

Photos of the week: Gazans search for normalcy among the ruins

What does life look like in Gaza after both the Israeli army and the media leave? Photos and Text: Basel Yazouri/Activestills.org People in Gaza are lost and uncertain. They cannot fathom what happened to them, and they cannot predict what might happen in the few next days. People whose houses were destroyed are living in…

By Activestills August 15, 2014

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Salah Salameen and his cousin, both 24, were injured by shrapnel from the August 3 strike. They were discharged from the Kuwaiti Hospital the day of the attack because there were no beds left for them. (photo: Samer Badawi)

Refugees once again: Gazans who lost their home wonder what’s next

As the ranks of Gaza’s internally displaced continue to grow, communities are forming in the most unlikely places. The Boys Preparatory School “A” is home to hundreds of Palestinians from eastern Rafah, where fierce fighting forced them to flee to the UN-run shelter. The school sits on a quiet street just off Rafah’s Nijmeh Circle,…

By Samer Badawi August 5, 2014

Three-year-old Firas Farhat lives with his brother, father and mother in a makeshift tent on a sidewalk outside Shifa Hospital. Their home in Gaza's Shejaiya neighborhood was destroyed by Israeli shelling. (photo: Samer Badawi)

Dispatch from Gaza: Palestinians flock to hospital to wait out assault

Hundreds of Palestinian families have sought cover in Gaza’s Al Shifa hospital, one of the last remaining shelters that has been spared Israeli bombardment. GAZA CITY – In the early morning of July 19th, Rafeeq Ibrahim and his wife grabbed their four daughters and made a run for it. Their neighborhood in Shejaiya, along Gaza’s eastern…

By Samer Badawi August 3, 2014