War and displacement in Gaza exacerbate psychological damage among children

Solar-powered flashlights have become a vital necessity for thousands of displaced people in the Gaza Strip, given the lack of electricity and alternatives. Families are forced to manage their daily lives in tents that plunge into darkness at night, amidst harsh living conditions that worsen with the approach of winter.

In the Al-Mawasi area, west of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, displaced people are hoping to receive flashlights distributed by charities and organizations. However, distribution has been limited to specific areas, leaving other families deprived despite their dire need.

These flashlights are not only important for providing light inside tents, but also for helping families monitor their children’s studies, enabling high school and university students to study at night, and for charging mobile phones and meeting other basic needs that have become difficult to manage without electricity. Displaced person Ahmed Abu Harbid, 36, said he hopes to receive one of the flashlights distributed by charities to a limited number of families in Al-Mawasi. He explained that they are solar-powered and equipped with a small charging panel, allowing them to be used without the need for conventional electricity.

He added that the flashlights can charge phones and light two tents simultaneously, thanks to a long cable connected to them with two bulbs. He noted that he has to charge his phone several times a day to use it to light his tent, as he has no other source of light.

Abu Harbid explained that receiving a flashlight would alleviate some of his daily hardships, as it would help him monitor his children’s studies, prepare dinner, and accompany them to the bathroom at night, given the darkness that envelops the tent.

In turn, the citizen Abdul Rahman Hamad stressed that obtaining a lighting scout should be available to every displaced