Summer camps supported by Türkiye have begun across the Gaza Strip, providing children affected by months of conflict with a safe space for recreation, education and psychosocial support.
The "Springs of Hope 2026" summer camps aim to reach around 8,000 children across Gaza, where many have grown up amid ongoing conflict and humanitarian hardship.
Organized by the Gaza Higher Council for Youth and Sports, the program officially opened at the Nuseirat Services Club in the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza.
During the opening ceremony, children gathered in front of a banner featuring Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan alongside Turkish and Palestinian flags, while participants waved the two countries' flags throughout the event.
Children of different age groups took part in a variety of activities, including religious performances, traditional Palestinian dabke dance shows, karate demonstrations, circus performances and other recreational events.
The camps are designed to provide children living under difficult humanitarian conditions with a secure social environment while supporting their psychological well-being through cultural, educational and sports activities.
Gassan Muhaysin, head of the Public Relations Department at the Gaza Higher Council for Youth and Sports, said the initiative seeks to restore hope despite the hardships facing the territory.
"Despite the death and destruction left behind, we want to bring smiles back to our children's faces," Muhaysin said, adding that 60 summer camps have opened as part of the program.
Camp coordinator Abdurrahman Tafish described organizing the camps under current conditions as "a major challenge" but said activities are expected to expand to northern Gaza next week despite the difficulties.
One of the participants, Ismail Ahmed al-Mufti, thanked the Turkish people for their continued support. "We have the right to be happy and to play," he said. "We thank the Turkish people for continuing to stand by Gaza and its children."
