The sole survivor

introduction:

Reports issued by international organizations until the end of February 2024 indicate that between 17,000 and 18,000 unaccompanied children (….) are called the only survivors who were left to continue their lives without care or financial support, while more than 450,000 family homes with children were destroyed. UNICEF described Gaza as currently the most dangerous place in the world for children to live, as four out of five children in the Gaza Strip suffer from depression, severe sadness and fear after fifteen years of blockade and as a result of Israeli bombing and raids, and the rate of post-traumatic stress, anxiety and severe depression is on the rise.

Hence, in response to the humanitarian challenges facing children in the Gaza Strip, and based on our humanitarian and religious duty, Al Noor Foundation launched a project to care for and embrace the sole survivor in order to provide a safe and sound environment for the care and embrace of children in the Gaza Strip who were affected by the horrors of war, to provide the basic requirements of life and full care so that they can live a dignified life together on their land and in their country. We have suggested naming this institution “Al Noor Center for Care and Embrace.”

Project objectives

The overall objective of the project is to provide a safe environment for the care and embrace of unaccompanied children who survived the war on the Gaza Strip. Specifically, the project will seek to achieve the following objectives:

1. Providing a decent and stable life for the children targeted by this initiative who were affected by the Zionist aggression on the Gaza Strip so that they can rely on themselves and be active in their society.
2. Reducing the risks of violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation that children are often exposed to in war situations.
3. Providing comprehensive care for these children targeted by this initiative, including psychological, social and family care.
4. Strengthening community cohesion in the Gaza Strip through networking and cooperation between entities working in the field of child care and protection and between public and community institutions, within various levels of humanitarian programmes to respond to the needs of children targeted in this initiative.
5. Preserving their Palestinian identity, keeping them on their land, and strengthening their steadfastness.

Target groups:

Unaccompanied and separated children (under the age of 18 according to Palestinian law), this includes:

1. Children who lost both their mothers and fathers during the war on the Gaza Strip 2023-2024.
2. Children who have lost all family members and have been identified.
3. Children who have lost all family members and are not identified – unidentified.
4. Children who lost a parent during the aggression on the Gaza Strip and whose families have no opportunity to earn a living or a source of income that provides them with a decent living.
5. Services will continue to be provided to project beneficiaries until the age of 24 (i.e. until the age of university graduation).

Project components:

The project is divided into two phases: the care phase, which will begin upon launching the project despite the field risks of working in the Gaza Strip due to the urgent need to protect children. This phase will include updating and collecting available information, hiring teams and caring for 3,000 unaccompanied children within individual care plans for each child, including emergency assistance to provide food, medicine, housing and a monthly allowance.

The second phase involves embracing the children in an environment that helps compensate them for the loss of their families and provides them with all social and educational services within an institution that offers an integrated package of services and facilities designed according to their needs. This phase will include a gradual increase in the number of targeted children and the provision of an integrated work team to operate the project’s programs, the most important of which are:

• Shelter Program
• Sponsorship Program for Hosted and Non-Hosted Children
• General Education and University Education
• Psychosocial Support Program (Group and Individual)
• Professional and Technical Skills Program