Despite the persistent danger of airstrikes and bombings, 15-year-old Youssef Saad, an oud player from Gaza, navigates the devastated streets of Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza on his bicycle, with his instrument secured on his back.
Saad performs for children who have faced relentless horrors over 11 months of conflict, aiming to bring them a bit of joy or respite. "The homes in my city were once brimming with dreams," Saad remarked, looking at the ruins of the long-standing urban refugee camp, which was densely populated before the war. "Now, they're gone," he laments. Before the war destroyed it, Saad was studying at the Edward Said National Conservatory of Music in nearby Gaza City. Now, after his own home was obliterated, he lives with relatives and is one of five siblings whose lives have been disrupted. His father, a government worker with the Palestinian Authority, always encouraged Saad's aspiration to be a musician. However, Saad's priorities have changed; he now spends his days at a Jabalia day center, playing his oud and singing for war-traumatized children.
The recent escalation in the long-standing Israeli-Palestinian conflict began on October 7 when the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas attacked Israel, resulting in the death of 1,200 people and the capture of about 250 hostages, according to Israeli reports. Following this, Israel's retaliatory attack on Hamas-controlled Gaza has led to the death of over 40,800 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, displaced nearly the entire population, and devastated the already besieged enclave.
"Every house holds a tragedy," Saad noted. "Some have lost their mother, others their father, their neighbor, or their friend." Despite the risks, Saad is resolute in his mission. "We try to help improve their mental health, even if it means putting myself at risk," he explained. "This is my duty to the children." He remains steadfast in his future aspirations: "We, the children of Palestine, strive to stay resilient, even in the face of genocide." Saad lives by a motto that sustains him through the toughest times: "If you live, live free, or die standing like trees."
