GAZA CITY: A pair of Palestinian clowns is offering some laughs and relief to children with chronic illnesses at pediatric wards in hospitals in the Gaza Strip.
With no circus or fair in Gaza to offer employment, Majed Kaloub and Alaa Miqdad began reaching out to kids in kindergartens and schools. Now, thanks to the aid of CISS, an Italian non-profit organization, they have found a niche for their work in hospitals, bringing some much needed cheer to sick children.
Neither is formally trained in medical clowning, a profession popularized by American doctor Patch Adams and in which Israel’s University of Haifa offers a bachelor’s degree, but their goal is the same — to raise the spirit of young patients in an already sad part of the world.
“The clown is a supporting tool for the medical doctor,” said Kaloub, 24. “As much as we can, we try to let the child respond to us to reach his heart.”
For Miqdad, a 33-year-old dwarf, the experience has been far more personal. When he was younger, he said he was bullied and teased and for a long time after that, he resisted children.
“The children are all my life now. I do most of the work with them,” he said.
Both started clowning in hospitals in 2014. That summer, they worked with children traumatized by incessant airstrikes during a deadly 50-war with Israel. They performed in damaged neighborhoods and temporary shelters. The experience inspired the clowns to take their act to hospitals where there were children with chronic illnesses.
Hardships remain in the Gaza Strip, an isolated coastal Palestinian territory ruled by the Hamas group and operating under a joint blockade imposed by Israel and Egypt. According to UNICEF, some 300,000 of its 1.8 million residents are in need of emotional and psychological support.
The clowns typically visit three medical centers a week. On a recent visit to Al-Rantisi hospital, children jumped from their parents’ laps to greet Miqdad, even before he put on his clown costume.
In a tiny locker room, Kaloub and Miqdad put on colorful loose outfits over their casual street clothes and applied makeup and a red clown’s nose. Miqdad put on a bright Mohawk wig. They then set off giggles with dancing, magic tricks and bubble-blowing.
“They are beautiful,” said Mohammed Al-Baz, 11, who suffers from a disorder of the brain that can cause epileptic seizures. “They make me laugh every time I come here.”
In the artificial kidney ward, some kids who were hooked up to dialysis machines nearly jumped out of their beds to grab bubbles. Mohammed Shawaf said his three-year-old daughter asks for the clowns even when she is back home from the hospital.
Yousef Al-Muqayyad, a doctor at Al-Rantisi, said the clowns help the staff connect with the young patients. The clowns “break the barrier of fear of the white coat,” he said. “When they would see the white (coat), the children used to scream.”
It’s easy to get attached to the children and the work has taken its toll on both clowns, said Kaloub, adding that they have needed psychological support. “One of the greatest difficulties is that most of the children we see die after we cherish them,” he said. “If we despair, we won’t continue our work.”
2 Palestinian clowns offer relief to kids in Gaza hospitals
2 Palestinian clowns offer relief to kids in Gaza hospitals
Sudan defense minister dismisses ‘intelligence document’ as fabrication after convoy strike
- Gen. Hassan Kabroun tells Arab News claims that army hid weapons in aid convoy are “completely false”
RIYADH: Sudan’s defense minister has firmly denied reports attributed to Sudanese intelligence alleging that a convoy targeted in North Kordofan was secretly transporting weapons under the cover of humanitarian aid.
Gen. Hassan Kabroun described the claims as “false” and an attempt to distract from what he called a militia crime.
The controversy erupted after news reports emerged that a document attributed to Sudan’s General Intelligence Service claimed the convoy struck in Al-Rahad on Friday was not a purely humanitarian mission, but was instead carrying “high-quality weapons and ammunition” destined for Sudanese Armed Forces units operating in the state.
The report further alleged that the convoy had been outwardly classified as humanitarian in order to secure safe passage through conflict zones, and that the Rapid Support Forces had destroyed it after gathering intelligence on its route and cargo.
Kabroun categorically rejected the narrative.
“First of all, we would like to stress the fact that this news is false,” he told Arab News. “Even the headline that talks about the security of the regions, such as Al-Dabbah, is not a headline the army would use.”
He described the document as fabricated and politically motivated, saying it was designed to “cover up the heinous crime they committed.”
The minister affirmed that the area targeted by drones is under full control of the Sudanese Armed Forces and does not require any covert military transport.
“Second, we confirm that the region that was targeted by drones is controlled by the army and very safe,” Kabroun said. “It does not require transporting any military equipment using aid convoys as decoys because it is a safe area controlled by the army, which has significant capabilities to transport humanitarian aid.”
According to the minister, the Sudanese military has both the logistical capacity and secure routes necessary to move equipment openly when needed.
“The army is professional and does not need to deliver anything to Kadugli or Dalang on board aid convoys,” he said. “The road between Dalang and Kadugli is open. The Sudanese forces used that road to enter and take control of the region. The road is open and whenever military trucks need to deliver anything, they can do so without resorting to any form of camouflage.”
Kabroun further rejected any suggestion that the military uses humanitarian operations as cover.
“Aid is transported by dedicated relief vehicles to the areas in need of this assistance,” he said. “Aid is not transported by the army. The army and security apparatus do not interfere with relief efforts at all, and do not even accompany the convoys.”
He stressed that the Sudanese Armed Forces maintains a clear institutional separation between military operations and humanitarian work, particularly amid the country’s crisis.
“These are false claims,” he said. “This fake news wanted to cover up the heinous crime they committed.”
Sudan has been gripped by conflict since April 2023, when fighting broke out between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces, plunging the country into what the United Nations has described as one of the world’s worst humanitarian disasters.
The latest dispute over the convoy comes amid intensified fighting in South Kordofan, a strategically sensitive region linking central Sudan with the contested areas of Darfur and Blue Nile.
The false report suggested that intelligence monitoring had enabled the RSF to strike what it described as a military convoy disguised as humanitarian aid. But Kabroun dismissed that version outright.
“The intelligence agency is well aware of its duties,” he said. “The Sudanese Army has enough weapons and equipment to use in the areas of operations. These claims are completely false.”
He argued that the narrative being circulated seeks to shift blame for attacks on civilian infrastructure and humanitarian movements.
“This shows that they are trying to cover up the atrocities,” he added, referring to the militia.
Kabroun maintained that the army has regained momentum on multiple fronts and remains fully capable of sustaining its operations without resorting to deception.
“The region is secure, the roads are open, and the army does not need camouflage,” he said. “We are operating professionally and transparently.”
“These claims are completely false,” Kabroun said. “The Sudanese Army does not use humanitarian convoys for military purposes.”
