Ahfad Al-Zaytoun Learning Centre Helps Gaza's Children Navigate Trauma

Since the ongoing genocide in Gaza began in October 2023, we’ve been observing documentation of horrific crimes against humanity being committed against innocent civilians, including children. The events are more jarring than anything we’ve seen in even the most aversive, dystopian films - and with it comes a general feeling of helplessness as we struggle to approach a pain so monumental.

Israa Aly, the founder of Ahfad Al-Zaytoun, was crippled by this same helplessness, until she realised that there was something she could do. As refugees from Gaza fled to Egypt with their children, she wondered how children who endured so much for the past months could assimilate back into classrooms, where teachers may fail to approach their trauma appropriately. She posted an Instagram story in March 2024 asking for volunteers that would would help create a safe environment for Palestinian children, and in doing so created Ahfad Al-Zaytoun.

Ahfad Al-Zaytoun is a non-governmental, non-profit organisation built to offer a trauma-informed community and learning centre for Palestinian children in Cairo. Led by experienced, empathetic teachers and psychologists specialising in the psychology of children with disabilities, the initiative hopes to offer the children the support they need for recovery.

Besides providing support to tens of children, Ahfad Al-Zaytoun achieves an incontestably paramount feat. It proves that even if the task feels huge, even if the damage feels irreparable, there is work to be done to heal.