Siblings Ali, Yousef, Nahla and Raef became orphans overnight when a missile hit their home in Gaza. They escaped, but with life-changing injuries: 10-year-old Ali’s hip and right thigh were wounded, 9-year-old Yousef lost a leg and had shells embedded in his chest, 4-year-old Nahla lost a toe and 3-year-old Raef’s left leg was broken. Their parents and their 8-year-old sister, Mira, didn’t survive.
The four children and their grandmother—their sole guardian—were transferred to an International Medical Corps’ field hospital. Since early 2024, our hospitals have provided lifesaving care for civilians affected by the conflict in Gaza, including a range of healthcare, mental health, protection and nutrition services.
While the doctors helped the children recover physically from their injuries, specialists from our Child Protection (CP) team stepped up to provide support. Although the children’s grandmother was initially hesitant—she doubted that the team could help the grief-stricken children—they talked to her about their services and she finally agreed.
The CP case managers and specialists first ensured that the children had adequate food, water and clothing. With the grandmother’s consent, they provided the children with psychological first aid, consultations and psychosocial support. Once the children’s health had improved, the CP specialists invited them into the hospital’s child-friendly tent, where they run such activities as arts and crafts, face-painting, singing and role-playing games. Though the children were hesitant at first, they gradually opened up and participated in the activities. Soon, they eagerly awaited the tent’s opening every day.
Over the following days and weeks, the change in the siblings was remarkable. Ali, the eldest sibling, found solace in the activities. “Playing games and laughing together makes me forget about my injuries. I feel like a normal kid again,” he said.
Yousef felt similarly. On one occasion, he was so excited to play in the tent that he leaped from his new wheelchair and crawled to the tent on the ground. “Every day, I wait for you in the tent so I can play with you,” he told CP Specialist Abeer Joma. “When I grow up, I want to be like you, so I can make other children happy—like I am happy with you!”
Raef, the youngest, said that drawing pictures and singing with the other children in the tent made him happy, while 4-year-old Nahla—who had often been cold at night—thanked the team for the cozy sweater they gave her. “Now, I feel safe and warm,” she said.
“Children in Gaza are particularly vulnerable to the risks of conflict, such as violence, abuse, neglect and severe distress from events like widespread destruction, relentless attacks and family separation,” says Manuela Repaci, CP Technical Advisor.
International Medical Corps has provided a range of humanitarian and protection programs in Gaza since 2008. However, after the conflict escalated on October 7, 2023, we increased our activities in response to the population’s rapidly growing needs.
“We adapted our child protection program to provide services tailored to the current needs and security conditions,” says Manuela. “Injured children are often urgently transported to our field hospital, but their caregivers may not be aware of where they are, or they may have also been injured or killed. In response, our services include case management to address children’s protection concerns and link children with appropriate services—including alternative care, family tracing and referrals to other services—as needed.
“We also provide psychological first aid and individual counseling to support children in distress, provide psychosocial support and recreational activities to provide a sense of normalcy and the opportunity for play, and provide awareness sessions to parents so they have resources to support them in times of crisis.”
Though the support of the CP team has returned hope and joy to these four frightened siblings, the challenges continue. They—and thousands of vulnerable Palestinians like them—need ongoing support, including healthcare, mental health and protection support, nutritional assistance, and services relating to water, sanitation and hygiene.
To help civilians in Gaza, International Medical Corps is now running two field hospitals providing comprehensive services, and has initiated an ambitious “Find and Treat” campaign to tackle childhood malnutrition. But we can’t do any of this without your help. You can support children like Ali, Yousef, Nahla and Raef—and other crisis-affected people around the world—by donating to International Medical Corps today.