Inside the Gaza Strip: A day in the life of Rahaf

Eleven-year-old Rahaf is one of the hundreds of thousands of children caught in a cycle of violence and pain as the war continues in the Gaza Strip. All of Gaza’s children have been exposed to the traumatic experiences of war, the consequences of which will last a lifetime. Displaced from Gaza City at the start of the war and now living in a camp for internally displaced people, Rahaf misses her school, her home – her old life.

But despite the unbearable living conditions, the bombardments and the violence, Rahaf still finds hope and comfort in the daily routines that so many people take for granted: Things like meeting friends for class and helping her parents with chores. 

Rahaf shares a glimpse of her life at a site for displaced people in the Gaza Strip

The new school year was due to start across the State of Palestine on 9 September 2024, but the ongoing war has made this impossible in the Gaza Strip. By early November 2024, more than 95 per cent of schools in Gaza had been partially or completely destroyed. Meanwhile, at least 658,000 school-aged children in Gaza have been disconnected from all formal learning activities, casting a shadow of uncertainty on their future; their lives overwhelmed by mental health distress.

UNICEF has continued to support learning and recreational activities through dozens of active temporary learning spaces, although bombardments and the constant movement and evacuations of internally displaced families make it difficult to plan and to find space for learning activities. Providing supplies for children to learn and play, meanwhile, also remains a challenge as stationery and recreational kits have only recently entered Gaza.

For older children, especially, the disruption to education has created uncertainty and anxiety. Without schooling, young people are at increased risk of exploitation, child labour and early marriage. Most importantly, they are at risk of dropping out of school permanently. For younger children, the absence of schooling threatens their cognitive, social and emotional development.

Nearly everyone in the Gaza Strip is living in poverty, and the violence and deprivation are leaving permanent scars on vulnerable children’s bodies and minds. As families have been repeatedly forced to move to escape the immediate violence, the humanitarian situation is catastrophic.

Despite the continued bombardments and limited access, UNICEF and partners have built thousands of toilets, supported almost a million people with cash assistance, helped hundreds of thousands of children with nutrition services, and reached more than 100,000 children under 5 with high-energy biscuits and nutrient supplements.

But the needs are enormous and, more than anything, children in the Gaza Strip need an immediate and lasting ceasefire.