NEW YORK: The UN children’s agency (UNICEF) has brought recreational kits for the children of the Gaza Strip after more than two years of restrictions.
According to a statement, since 15 January, 5,168 recreational kits have entered the Strip, supporting more than 375,000 children – including 1,000 children with disabilities.
“For young children around the world, including in Gaza, playing is not a luxury, but how they develop language, motor skills, problem-solving, and social-emotional skills,” said Ted Chaiban, UNICEF Deputy Executive Director, Humanitarian Action and Supply Operations, who visited Gaza this week.
“These recreational supplies will help create safer, structured spaces where children can return to routines, express emotions, and continue learning even in crisis conditions. Now we must be permitted to bring all other education and Early Childhood Development (ECD) supplies into Gaza soon to benefit 336,000 children with the most basic materials they need to be able to learn.”
According to the statement, these supplies—including notebooks, pencils, erasers, and crayons—will also provide caregivers and educators with practical tools to engage children in age-appropriate activities that support their development, alleviate stress, and reinforce safe, nurturing environments.
Even amid the disruption and ongoing hardships in Gaza, children must continue learning and growing, it said.
Israeli strikes continue in Gaza
Meanwhile, Israeli artillery struck multiple locations across Gaza on Friday, including areas under Israeli military control and deployment according to the ceasefire agreement, local sources reported.
The sources indicated that several strikes occurred east of Gaza City in zones under Israeli occupation. They also reported additional artillery fire targeting areas north of the southern city of Rafah, which remains entirely under Israeli control.
Since the ceasefire came into force, Israeli forces have killed at least 477 Palestinians and injured 1,301 others in alleged violations of the agreement.
The ceasefire ended a war that started in October 2023 and lasted about two years, killing more than 71,000 Palestinians and wounding over 171,000 others.
The war left extensive devastation, with around 90 percent of Gaza’s civilian infrastructure damaged or destroyed, and the United Nations estimates reconstruction costs at approximately $70 billion.
