Reference :
V-P-IL-E-03328
Date :
13/08/2019
Caption :
Gaza, Khan Yunis. For one shekel, a child is entitled to 15 to 20 minutes of jumping on the trampoline. This is the source of income for this 28-year-old man and his family.
Confidentiality level :
public
Publication restrictions :
publication without restrictions
Description :
Unable to find a job in Gaza, he was forced to get creative to earn a living. He turned to a trampoline as a source of income for his family—and joy for the local children. He bought the trampoline after his sick father died. The item is a chief source of entertainment for the kids of the al-Hawooz neighborhood in Khan Yunis.
“I dropped out of high school. When my father died, we were in a very hard place. So I decided to look for an alternative means of subsistence. And this is when I came up with the trampoline idea, as it is not pricey,”he says.
He remains unmarried because of his family’s difficult financial situation. His three brothers are all married with children, surviving without regular income and in severe debt. The entire family shares a single residence. Rather than start a family of his own, he decided to take care of his mother and provide for the extended family.
“My father used to work in Israel,” he says. “In his last years, he was unemployed. Unfortunately, he didn’t have anything to leave behind, and I would never ask for charity from anyone. I promised my mother I would do everything I could to provide for the family.” His favorite time of the year is the Eid season. Children come from all over Gaza to play on the trampoline, getting 15 minutes for one shekel. The children’s joy and laughter make him happy. “I wish every day was Eid,” he says. At over 50%, Gaza suffers from one of the highest unemployment rates in the world, including the highest youth unemployment, which has reached 70%.
Resolution :
6738x4553
Orientation :
landscape
Colour/B&W :
colour
