Real Lives

Scavenging for survival
GAZA STRIP, Occupied Palestinian Territory, 17 August 2011 - Ayman, 15, lives in Khuza’a, an impoverished village in southern Gaza, where extreme poverty has dramatically increased due to the blockade.

Children learn through Enjoyment
Nablus, West Bank. August 2010. Students dance in a UNICEF supported Learning through Enjoyment classroom. This initiative is funded by the Swedish International Development Agency, emphasizes creative learning through games, dance and art.

Young Researchers’ Our Year Our Voice
East Jerusalem, 12 August 2010 – In Silwan, a neighborhood of East Jerusalem, adolescents face the challenges of poverty, lack of services and risk of displacement.

A safe space in Jerusalem Old City
1 July 2010 – Jerusalem’s Bab Hutta neighborhood is one of its poorest. Young people are enticed to drop out of school, marry early and use drugs. At Burj Al-Luq Luq, one of UNICEF-supported adolescent friendly space, young people find shelter from daily

Learning Can Be Fun
May 2010: Adolescent girls in the northern West Bank village of Skaka have found a good reason to stay after school – a “Learning Can Be Fun” programme that offers them a chance to play, learn and interact with their peers.

Giving families a chance for recovery
On any given weekday, around 250 children and 50 caregivers come to the Ajyal Al-Mostaqbal family centre for psychosocial support, learning and recreational activities in a safe environment. For them, it is a long road to recovery since “Cast Lead”.

Children celebrating Water Day
With the theme “Clean Water for a Healthy World”, Palestinian children celebrated World Water Day to call attention to the importance of fresh water, sanitation and sustainable water management.

Displaced children in Gaza struggle to school
12 October 2009- The conflict in Gaza may have resided but children still face difficulties in attending school

Nurturing creativity and play
oPt, 3 June 2009 – With support from the Spanish Government, UNICEF developed Early Childhood Development kits for kindergartens across oPt. The developmental toys and games are especially designed to encourage creativity and learning.

Bringing innovation to classrooms in oPt
29 May 2009 - In 2009, UNICEF has distributed 397 locally developed Math and Science teaching kits to Gaza’s schools in order to respond to the educational needs of the conflict-affected children.

Encouraging play in the West Bank
On 24 April 2009, UNICEF and Right to Play held a ‘fun day’ at the isolated community of Arab al-Ramadeen in the West Bank. Sixty families live in this “enclave” – surrounded by the Israeli-constructed Barrier.

National reading week celebrated
9 April 2009 - School children throughout oPt celebrated a national reading week in early April 2009. UNICEF-supported reading centres, school libraries and reading programmes took active part in the celebrations through creativity and play.

Celebrating World Water Day in Gaza
On the 22 March 2009, World Water Day, children and adults came together in conflict-affected Gaza to celebrate water. Chronic water shortages plague the oPt, exacerbated by the ongoing conflicts.

Endless crisis for Gaza's children
By 19 January 2009, one day after a tentative ceasefire began, 410 children have been killed and 1,855 injured following the 27 December 2008 Israeli military incursion into the Gaza Strip in the occupied Palestinian territory.

Palestinian Child's Day - One Day is not enough
4 April 2008 - A photoessay celebrating Palestinian Children's Day

Eliminating Iodine Deficiency Disorder (IDD) in oPt
2 March 2006 - UNICEF is contributing to the elimination of IDD among the Palestinian population by ensuring that all children and mothers consume iodized salt needed for their health and well being

Palestinian Children Celebrate CRC Day
18 November 2005 - A photo essay celebrating children's rights on CRC Day

Reaching out to the world
27 July 2005 - Inas, a 15 year old girl spends her early morning during summer vacation helping her mother with the daily house chores. she enjoys writing poetry and daily diaries.

Home Away From Home?
16 June 2005 - This is a photo essay on the Gaza Strip, focusing on the story of an adolescent boy who ended up in Israeli detention.