With immense enthusiasm, 31-year-old Mouin Khalil cheered on Al-Ahly Palestinian Club player Mohammed Barakat as he prepared to take a decisive penalty kick against the opposing team at Yarmouk Stadium in central Gaza City. The atmosphere was vibrant with sportsmanship and excitement.
"Will Barakat do it and secure the win for us?" Khalil's friend, sitting next to him on the stadium stands, asked. With a confident smile, Khalil replied, "Barakat is a seasoned player and the first Palestinian footballer to score 100 goals. He'll do it for sure."
Moments later, the stadium erupted in celebration as Barakat successfully scored, clinching the victory for his team in Gaza's annual Premier League football tournament.
Khalil snapped out of the fond memory, recounting a time before Israel's war on Gaza began on 7 October 2023. He is now displaced with his family of four, living in a tent on the stadium grounds, which has been repurposed as a shelter site for families who had their homes destroyed by Israel.
Yarmouk Stadium, once a vibrant symbol of Gaza's joyful spirit, now stood in ruins after being bombed by Israeli forces, filled with tents erected amidst the destruction. Khalil's grief deepens after hearing about the death of his favourite player, Mohammed Barakat, in an Israeli airstrike on Barakat's home on 11 March 2024.
"I've lost so much in this war—not just my home, but also the beautiful memories tied to this stadium. I never imagined a place of joy could turn into a refuge for sorrow and fear," Khalil remarked to °®Âþµº as he tried to comfort his children playing beside the tent.
He spoke further about how the Israeli forces destroyed parts of the stadium's stands and bulldozed its lush green field, which once resembled world-class stadiums.
Khalil pointed out that the floodlights that once illuminated football matches were now used to secure tents. The spectators' stands have turned into spaces for women and children, used for washing clothes and dishes. The locker rooms are now communal areas for bathing and storage.
Despite these challenges, Khalil maintains a sense of resilience in the camp. "We try to organise some recreational activities for the children so they don't lose all hope. This stadium was a source of happiness, and I won't let it become a permanent symbol of sorrow in my children's memories," he argued.
Destroying dreams
Yarmouk Stadium is one of the oldest stadiums in Palestine, established in 1938. Now as a haven for displaced people, the Israeli army had turned used it as a detention and for Palestinians in December 2023 during the ground invasion of Gaza City.
"Umm Ahmed," who lives in the Al-Rimal neighbourhood in central Gaza City, told TNA, on condition of anonymity, that she was one of dozens of men, women, and children taken to the stadium by the Israeli army, blindfolded, interrogated, and abused.
She said that the stadium's grounds and stands witnessed the Israeli army's abuse, particular on Palestinian men, who were stripped of their clothes and harshly beaten.
"I did not expect to end up here. We used to come to the stadium to enjoy ourselves, and now we live there as displaced people with no hope. Even food and water are barely enough," she added.
Yarmouk Stadium was not the only entertainment or sports venue that was transformed into a centre for torture, detention, and then shelter. Most of the stadiums, gyms, and public parks have been impacted by Israel's war. 45 sports clubs, including 7 major stadiums such as Yarmouk, Beit Hanoun, Beit Lahia, Jabalia, and Rafah, have been destroyed by Israeli forces, while other sites were used to bury Palestinians in mass graves.
"The Israeli occupation is targeting Palestinian youth and their dreams by destroying stadiums, sports, and entertainment facilities," Abdel Salam Haniyeh, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council for Youth and Sports, told TNA.
He pointed out that these systematic attacks aim to change the face of life in Gaza, by using violence and abuse as tools to destroy the spirit of society.
He also stressed that the Israeli occupation seeks, by targeting stadiums and parks, to make life in Gaza impossible after the end of the war.
Moreover, Haniyeh criticised the world's silence in the face of these crimes.
"What is happening reflects the [Israeli] occupation's complete disregard for international laws that protect human rights, preserve human dignity, and prohibit targeting public facilities and private property," he said.
Stories of suffering
In the city of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, "Asdaa Entertainment City", which has always hosted families on their weekly holidays to have some fun and recreation, has been transformed into one of the largest camps for the displaced.
Asdaa City was established on an area of one thousand dunams, and included vast green spaces, water games, and a zoo.
Raafat Al-Najjar, 51 years old, was forced to set up his tent in Asdaa city after fleeing the village of Al-Zana, located east of Khan Younis, after it was invaded and completely destroyed by the Israeli army.
Al-Najjar considers displaced one of the harshest experiences a person can face. "It never occurred to us that we would reach this stage of a harsh primitive life," he told TNA.
He pointed to the enormous challenges facing the displaced in Asdaa city, as the city was designed to be a place for entertainment and short trips, not for long-term shelter.
"We used to visit Asdaa to spend our holidays with our family, and today months have passed, and we are stuck in a place dominated by sadness and depression. The adults and children here are suffering, and the children's faces tell stories of suffering without words," Al-Najjar added.
All Al-Najjar dreams of is for the end of Israel's war and for life to return to Gaza, even if it is above the rubble and destruction left behind by the Israeli genocidal, war machine.