Qatar has evacuated more than 500 wounded people, along with over 800 of their companions and 700 others with special cases.
Generation Amazing (GA) and Maktaba are hosting a summer camp for Palestinian children evacuated from the Gaza Strip to Doha under wider efforts to provide them with much-needed psycho-social support.
The summer camp is taking place in two stages, the first one is between June 30 and July 25 for children aged four-to-eight. The second one is between August 4 and 22 for children aged nine-to-16.
In a statement to Doha News, Nasser Al Khori, GA’s Executive Director, said the camp is part of the organisation and Maktaba’s “tailor-made programme” that is offering psycho-social support to the evacuees.
“At the Summer Camp, we will be providing sports for development activities dedicated to empowering individuals and promoting good health, inclusivity, and social unity,” Al Khori said.
On December 3, 2023, Qatar’s Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani announced an initiative aimed at sponsoring 3,000 orphans and providing medical care for 1,500 injured Palestinians from Gaza.
The upcoming summer camp will also witness the first series of GA and Maktaba’s writing workshops as part of the Reading Goals campaign.
The joint campaign first benefitted children evacuated from Afghanistan by Qatar in 2021 following the fall of Kabul. At the time, Qatar carried the largest airlift of people in history when it evacuated at least 80,000 Afghans and foreigners.
During the current summer camp, Maktaba will guide the youth on story writing while providing them with the opportunity to potentially publish their own work.
“We have been dedicated to creating a supportive environment for children evacuated from Gaza to Doha by organising sports-based activities, training and events,” Al Khori explained.
He added that utilising sports’ “unifying power” would help “influence positive social change and empower” the children and youth evacuated from the Gaza Strip.
GA’s activities cover four elements, including “the rehabilitation and psychological well-being of children through sports” as well as the promotion of the key “values of teamwork, respect, and tolerance among the residents.”
Other aspects include fostering social cohesion and empowering the youth and adults to take on leadership roles in sports coaching and management through GA’s Football Coach Training Programme.
Al Khori added that their Master Coach, Hamad, is currently working on building a football team to represent the Palestinian compound in Qatar.
“We are running a football training programme for coaches and building a football team to represent the Gaza compound in friendly games and tournaments, in addition to creating opportunities for recreational outings,” Al Khori said.
GA and Maktaba have been regularly holding activities at the Al Thumama Complex that incorporate psycho-social support, from sports to embroidery classes.
“These programmes help to foster a sense of community, resilience, and hope among the evacuees, aiding in their overall recovery and integration into their new environment,” Al Khori said.
Israel’s war in the Gaza Strip entered its tenth month without a ceasefire in sight, with more than 38,000 people killed, mainly women and children, by Israeli occupation forces.
According to the United Nations, one million children are in need of mental health and psycho-social support and at least 17,000 children are unaccompanied or separated.
“The children of Gaza often face a range of challenges, including mental health issues such as anxiety, depression, and trauma due to their displacement and the horrific experiences they’ve endured,” Al Khori said.
