Trauma-sensitive yoga helps displaced children in Gaza cope with the psychological toll of Israel's genocide

Sometimes, in the heart of pain, great initiatives are born. At Al Jawad Camp in central Gaza, a group of Palestinian children sit cross-legged on the floor, small eyes closed, taking in a deep inhalation of air and then slowly exhaling as the sounds of Israeli warplanes continue to hum above them. They’re being led by the tent’s director, Hadeel Al Gharbawi, who has recently learned how to teach children trauma-sensitive yoga.

Yoga is an effective tool in treating PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder), with tonnes of research proving it has a significant impact in reducing anxiety and stress, including in children exposed to war and disasters. But who would have imagined that this ancient mindfulness practice would find its way to Gaza, providing some mental respite in the midst of a genocide?

Al Jawad is one of many displacement tents in central Gaza; the difference is that it focuses on the education and psychological support of displaced Palestinian children.

At its helm is 28-year-old Hadeel, an English literature graduate and mother of one with another child on the way, who single-handedly set up the camp in July 2024 without any government support or external funding.

The camp can accommodate 50 to 60 children of all ages, who are admitted on a rotational basis every three months. They are taught the Palestinian national curriculum and participate in arts and crafts, as well as recreational activities, in addition to receiving food, school bags, and stationery. The children are provided with all of this for free, despite the scarcity of food and high cost of resources. Currently, the camp relies solely on the generous donations of people online.

During the temporary ceasefire that lasted from January to March 2025, Hadeel connected on social media with Leila Johnson, the co-founder of We Are Mindful — a small organisation that works in partnership with community leaders, educators, clinicians, and artists to support collective wellness. Together, they discussed the possibility of teaching trauma-sensitive yoga to the children at Al Jawad Camp.

With healing being a relational practice and yoga being a relational practice, Leila says that teaching the children herself through a video call was never a consideration; Hadeel was the best-placed person to do it.

“Gaza’s healing belongs to its people,” Leila tells The New Arab, “It should not be led or based on Western metrics or Eurocentrism. Those closest to the suffering, to have those voices centred, is what needs to remain at the forefront of decision-making.”

Safe spaces

Since 2018, We Are Mindful has worked with women in the SWANA region, training them in evidence and culture-based trauma-sensitive yoga. This has included Syria and the West Bank, and more recently, since connecting with Hadeel in Gaza.

“The team’s work has been meaningful, introducing terms such as ‘trauma-sensitive yoga’ and ‘interoception’ into Arabic vernacular. Using your mother tongue helps create a sense of psychological comfort, a safer feeling in an environment that may not be safe," Leila says.

“We define trauma-sensitive yoga as an exercise for the brain-body experience, and its goal is to help create new narratives which can rewire the brain. Prior to the recent changes in US policies, it never would have occurred to me that a yoga project which supports children’s mental health could be so political.”

Despite challenges with the internet connection, which often caused the Wi-Fi to drop off, Leila was able to train Hadeel. Since April, she has been leading yoga sessions with the children independently. Hadeel has had to learn about trauma theory, attachment theory, neuroscience and yoga all on her own, with her smartphone being her only learning aid. But her efforts have paid off.

“The children have completely embraced it,” Hadeel tells The New Arab. “They have felt a real improvement in their mental health. They enjoy it so much that they even practice it with their families inside their tents!”

Despite trauma-sensitive yoga being a relatively gentle practice, Hadeel says some of the children have found parts of it challenging, and this is due to the fatigue they are suffering as a result of malnutrition. But they haven’t given up.

“We might not have a quiet space or yoga mats for our practice, but we have still managed to create a safe mental space amidst all this noise,” she says. “The challenges never end, but our hope is stronger than them.”

Letting go of fear

With the arrival of summer, the temperatures in Gaza are beginning to soar, adding another layer of difficulty as Al Jawad Camp finds the tent becoming stiflingly hot and stuffy.

With power outages, it is difficult to plug in a fan, and just finding batteries for a battery-powered fan is a challenge. Nevertheless, Hadeel says she continues her work, drawing energy from the sight of the children smiling after a yoga session or comments from their mothers.

“One mother told me that since her son has been practising yoga, he is calmer and can now sleep at night,” she shares.

“I love doing yoga because it is new and different and not like other sports,” says Sondos, one of the children at the camp.

“It helps me forget about my fear,” says Shatha, another child.

The work Hadeel is doing with displaced Gaza children is having a wider impact. Alongside We Are Mindful, Aida Youth Center in the West Bank and the Mind-Body Trauma Care Lab at the University of Minnesota, they are making note of the improvements in concentration, stress regulation and emotional wellbeing over 10 weeks as part of a wider community-led research project.

“The study is the first of its kind, evaluating how trauma-sensitive yoga may help children in ongoing crisis zones,” explains Leila.

“This means yoga when offered through the lens of culture and community and in a trauma-informed way, could have a positive impact even in places where trauma isn’t past tense but ongoing.”

The children of Al Jawad Camp may not have an air-conditioned yoga studio or a safe, quiet beach, yet they have still found the courage to face life with a deep breath and a smile.

Haya Ahmed is a doctor and freelance writer from Gaza