Gaza: Selling handmade dolls to survive and bring joy to children

Some Palestinians in the Gaza Strip are using arts and crafts to express their trauma from the war and make some money, as the humanitarian situation in the enclave remains dire although overshadowed by the Iran war.

Shireen al-Kurdi, a 36-year-old displaced mother of five, is earning a limited income through her hobby of making crochet dolls and selling them at an affordable price.

“I got the idea after the markets started lacking children’s toys. I started designing my own dolls with minimal resources and details,” she explained.

The war in Gaza has pushed the territory’s 2.3 million people into poverty, according to UN Trade and Development.

Shireen al-Kurdi sells each of her dolls for around $10, but her project barely brings enough money to support her family.

“The revenue I get from this small project is not enough to cover the expenses of a family of seven, but it helps,” she said.

Inside her tent, her crochet supplies, colorful yarn and needles, lay beside finished pieces, including cartoon characters and a brightly colored crochet cake.

Food and basic supplies in markets across Gaza are often unaffordable for many Palestinians, if available at all.

Toys for children and art materials are also scarce, forcing artists to improvise.

“Every child in every tent in Gaza has the right to have a doll and the right to play which they have been deprived of because of years of war that we’ve been through,” al-Kurdi said, adding that she works on the dolls for long hours a day inside her tent often without light.

Airstrikes, shelling, and gunfire have continued across multiple areas of the Gaza Strip, according to the UN.

Gaza’s ministry of health has reported the death of 20 Palestinians between 26 March and 1 April.