'Dabke among tents': Gaza girls find solace in traditional dance amid Israel's genocidal war

Displaced trainer launches initiative to provide recreational, psychological support for girls who endured years of war, displacement 'We forgot for a while the pains of war and the difficult years we lived through, and we now have a place where we can express ourselves,' 13-year-old Sabreen says 'We, the children of Gaza, want to live like the rest of the world's children,' 12-year-old Ruba says Every child in Gaza urgently needs some form of psychological, social support, UNICEF say Inside a large tent set up in a displacement camp in central Gaza, girls wearing embroidered Palestinian dresses perform dabke (traditional dance) after training through an individual initiative aimed at easing the psychological effects of Israel's war and repeated displacement. Dabke is a traditional folk dance from the Levant, popular in Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and Iraq. Performed in lines or circles, it is marked by synchronized stomping, hopping and kicking, and is commonly featured at weddings, festivals and other celebrations. The tent has become a space for training and heritage performances, where the girls challenge the harshness of Israel's genocide. Nearby, tents shelter thousands of displaced people who lost their homes during the war. The girls have found in the initiative an outlet that helps them express themselves and recover part of the normal life they lived before the genocide began in October 2023. The initiative also seeks to ease the psychological impact of the war, repeated displacement and the suffering that accompanied it. On Oct. 8, 2023, Israel began a genocide with US support that has killed more than 73,000 Palestinians, wounded more than 173,000 and caused massive destruction affecting 90% of civilian infrastructure. After two years of war, a ceasefire agreement was reached in October 2025. Israel has violated it daily, with those violations killing 1,021 people and wounding 3,249 others. Recreational and psychological support Dabke trainer Muhannad Abu Ayyash told Anadolu that he launched the initiative after he was displaced to the camps, with the aim of providing recreational and psychological support for girls who lived through a long period of war and suffering. "We were displaced from our homes and came to the tents, and I thought of carrying out a simple initiative inside the camp, where I began training a group of girls and young women in traditional dabke," he said. Abu Ayyash said that from the first moments of the initiative, he noticed strong engagement from families who encouraged their daughters to take part. "I chose dabke because it is one of the most prominent forms of Palestinian heritage and an authentic part of national identity," he said, wearing a Palestinian keffiyeh over his shoulders. "The girls became very attached to Palestinian heritage, and dabke for them is not just a dance, but a way to express their belonging and identity," he said. "Today, we have a full team capable of presenting national and heritage performances," he added. "We came out from between the rubble and tents, from the heart of suffering, to send a message to the world that the Palestinian people love life and hold on to their culture and heritage despite everything they are going through," he continued. Coping with pressure Among the trainees, 13-year-old Sabreen al-Hour stands with her friends, preparing to begin one of the training segments. Sabreen said taking part in dabke helped her overcome many of the psychological pressures linked to the war and displacement. "Before joining dabke, most of our conversations were about water, the community kitchen and the difficulties of daily life," she said. "But when we started dancing dabke, we felt great joy and were able to release the negative energy inside us," she continued. "We forgot for a while the pains of war and the difficult years we lived through, and we now have a place where we can express ourselves," she added. For 12-year-old Ruba Mohammed al-Hasanat, dabke gave her a chance to express what she lived through during scenes of bombing and destruction. "Through dabke, I release everything inside me from feelings connected to war, fear and suffering," she said. "We, the children of Gaza, want to live like the rest of the world's children," she continued. "We want to be happy, play and feel safe," Ruba added. "This dabke lets us express ourselves and carries our voice to the outside," she said. As the dabke class ends, the girls continue performing dabke routines in an open area between the tents, while children and women living in the camp watch. Palestinian volunteers, local institutions and UN agencies regularly hold recreational activities for children inside displacement camps across different parts of Gaza. The activities, which aim to ease children's psychological conditions, include games, entertainment, singing training and traditional dabke. In November 2025, UNICEF said every child in Gaza urgently needed some form of psychological and social support. "Two years of relentless violence and displacement have taken a devastating toll on families in the Gaza Strip, where a million children have endured daily horrors simply trying to survive," UNICEF said in a statement. "All children in the Gaza Strip have been exposed to violence that has disrupted their sense of safety, stability and childhood," it added. UNICEF said that before the war began, half of Gaza's children already needed some form of psychological support because of difficult conditions and repeated escalations in the enclave. According to Gaza's Health Ministry, Israeli attacks have killed 1,021 Palestinians and injured 3,249 others since the ceasefire. Israel's genocidal war on Gaza since October 2023 has killed 73,032 people, injured over 173,300 and caused massive destruction to about 90% of the enclave's infrastructure, with the United Nations estimating reconstruction costs at about $70 billion. *Writing by Lina Altawell in Istanbul