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After the establishment of the state of Israel approximately 750.000 Palestinians had fled because of massacres or fear of massacres in their villiages. In 2022 refugees form 65,3% of the population in Gaza Strip. Unemployment rates in Gaza Strip are 39,1% for men, 67,4% for women and 73,9% for youth. The percentage of the population under 29 is 68% and the percentage of people that is foodinsecure is 63%. The poverty rate is 53%. <ref>{{Cite web |date=3 May 2023 |title=UNSCO Report to the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee |url=https://unsco.unmissions.org/sites/default/files/unsco_ahlc_report_-_may_2023.pdf |url-status=live |website=https://unsco.unmissions.org/}}</ref>              
After the establishment of the state of Israel approximately 750.000 Palestinians had fled because of massacres or fear of massacres in their villiages. In 2022 refugees form 65,3% of the population in Gaza Strip. Unemployment rates in Gaza Strip are 39,1% for men, 67,4% for women and 73,9% for youth. The percentage of the population under 29 is 68% and the percentage of people that is foodinsecure is 63%. The poverty rate is 53%. <ref>{{Cite web |date=3 May 2023 |title=UNSCO Report to the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee |url=https://unsco.unmissions.org/sites/default/files/unsco_ahlc_report_-_may_2023.pdf |url-status=live |website=https://unsco.unmissions.org/}}</ref>              


== Surfing in the Gaza Strip ==
=== Surfing in the Gaza Strip ===


=== Significance of surfing ===
==== Significance of surfing ====
The ocean is among the last things that people in the Gaza Strip can enjoy. People surfing in the gaza strip find their way to freedom from their political and social situation in the aquatic activity. In this way, surfing is part of their daily lifes and their culture. Surfing takes a very important role for the Palestinian population in the Gaza Strip, is have been transmited generationally and takes an important meaning in the relation to their homeland. <ref name=":0" /><ref name=":4" />
The ocean is among the last things that people in the Gaza Strip can enjoy. People surfing in the gaza strip find their way to freedom from their political and social situation in the aquatic activity. In this way, surfing is part of their daily lifes and their culture. Surfing takes a very important role for the Palestinian population in the Gaza Strip, is have been transmited generationally and takes an important meaning in the relation to their homeland. <ref name=":0" /><ref name=":4" />


=== Surfing projects ===
==== Surfing projects ====
In 2005 the [https://surfing4peace.org/ Surfing 4 Peace] cooperation initiative was established by Doc Paskowitz. <ref name=":1">{{Cite news |last=Gartside |first=Luke |date=12 December 2019 |title=Between struggle & rubble; The besieged surfers of Gaza. |work=Wavelength volume 255 |url=https://wavelengthmag.com/struggle-besieged-surfers-gaza/}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Olsen |first=Matt |date=27 September 2012 |title=The Gaza Surf Club. The troubled times of an unlikely surf community. |url=https://www.surfer.com/features/the-gaza-surf-club |url-status=live |website=www.surfer.com}}</ref> He donated surfboards to Israeli Arab surfers and organised a surfing contest. One of the two surfers involved with the cooperation from Gaza was Mohammed Abu Jayab who later on is involved with the Gaza Surf Club. Surfing 4 Peace keeps working with local surfers in Gaza Strip to establish the sport and a clubhouse there. Another initiative to support the local surfers is Gaza Surf Relief. <ref name=":2" /> Surfing is a way to stand up against the authorities and to escape every day living conditions in Gaza. In 2010 Surfing 4 Peace donated 30 surfboards to the local surfers in Gaza. It took over two years and a lot of negotiations to get the surfboards into the Gaza Strip. Matt Olsen, one of the ambassadors of Surfing 4 Peace is also involved with the establishment of the Gaza Surf Club in 2008. <ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />
In 2005 the [https://surfing4peace.org/ Surfing 4 Peace] cooperation initiative was established by Doc Paskowitz. <ref name=":1">{{Cite news |last=Gartside |first=Luke |date=12 December 2019 |title=Between struggle & rubble; The besieged surfers of Gaza. |work=Wavelength volume 255 |url=https://wavelengthmag.com/struggle-besieged-surfers-gaza/}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Olsen |first=Matt |date=27 September 2012 |title=The Gaza Surf Club. The troubled times of an unlikely surf community. |url=https://www.surfer.com/features/the-gaza-surf-club |url-status=live |website=www.surfer.com}}</ref> He donated surfboards to Israeli Arab surfers and organised a surfing contest. One of the two surfers involved with the cooperation from Gaza was Mohammed Abu Jayab who later on is involved with the Gaza Surf Club. Surfing 4 Peace keeps working with local surfers in Gaza Strip to establish the sport and a clubhouse there. Another initiative to support the local surfers is Gaza Surf Relief. <ref name=":2" /> Surfing is a way to stand up against the authorities and to escape every day living conditions in Gaza. In 2010 Surfing 4 Peace donated 30 surfboards to the local surfers in Gaza. It took over two years and a lot of negotiations to get the surfboards into the Gaza Strip. Matt Olsen, one of the ambassadors of Surfing 4 Peace is also involved with the establishment of the Gaza Surf Club in 2008. <ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />


=== Difficulties ===
==== Difficulties ====
The political conflict and turmoil, the scarce supplies, and the lossing of right over their lands, makes it difficult for Gazans to surf.<ref name=":0" />
The political conflict and turmoil, the scarce supplies, and the lossing of right over their lands, makes it difficult for Gazans to surf.<ref name=":0" />


Revision as of 09:30, 17 May 2023

Gaza Surf Club
Film poster
Directed byPhilip Gnadt
Mickey Yamine
Written byPhilip Gnadt
Mickey Yamine
Release date
  • 9 September 2016 (2016-09-09) (TIFF)
Running time
96 minutes
CountryGermany
LanguageArabic

Gaza Surf Club is a 2016 German documentary film directed by Philip Gnadt and Mickey Yamine that follows the story of a group of Palestinians who practice surfing in their daily lives as a source of freedom in the Mediterranean Gaza Strip coast.[1][2] It was screened for the first time after 5 years of filming in the Documentaries section at the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival.[3]

Apart from being the name of the 2016 documentary film, Gaza Surf Club is aswell an actual sports club founded in 2008 in Gaza by the Explore Corps non-for-profit organization. It is responsible of educational programs and communitiy empowerment for the surfers in the Gaza Strip.[4][5]

About the film

Gaza Surf Club, the documentary film tells the story of a group of Palestinians who practice surfing as a recreational activity in their daily lives in the Mediterranean Gaza Strip coast. The film focuses on the narrative of 3 persons which together provide an insight into the culture of surfing in the Gaza Strip.[6] In adittion, the film has two main settings: Gaza and Hawaii.

Although the Gaza Strip is under the political turmoil and the humanitarian crisis caused by the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, this documentary is not political, but focuses on surfing from the human experience. Thus, it tries to move away from the perspective of Gazans as victims and presents them as ordinary people with dreams and limits. However, their lives, are inevitably affected by a conflict that does not cease, and this is a reality that is implicit in the documentary. [6]

Summary

The film begins by introducing the everyday lifes of people who in one way or another, are related or practice surfing in the Gaza Strip. And so, it begins by showing scenes and everyday conversations and realities that the inhabitants have in Gaza. [6][7] When the tide is right, the surfing boys take their old pickup truck and drive through the pumped-out city streets, and approach the beach.[8]

As it picks up pace, the documentary gives voice to 3 main people. First, the 49 years old fishermen Mohammed Aby Jayab, who struggles to feed his family for the limited fish resources on the sea, and who is in charge of teaching surfing to the young population. Also, it presents the life of the young girl Sabah, who is 15 years old and not allowed to surf because of social stigma, and cultural norms attached to her gender. Last, it presents the story of Ibrahim, who is 23 years old and dreams to create a surfing club and a formal space dedicated to surfing in Gaza.[6][9]

Their narratives help to understand what the culture of surfing is in Gaza and, what it means to its inhabitants and what their dreams and limits are in the sport.

Ibrahim tries to obtain his visa to travel to Hawaii, where a friend of him, Mathiew, is. He hopes to learn more about surfing there. His friend, is waiting to provide materials for surfing, such as surfing boards and other training resources. He hopes to get the sufficient knowledge and contacts to open a surfing and club back in the Gaza Strip.[9] [10]

Reception

The documentary film was screened for the first time at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2016. Moreover, it was catalogued as the "Best of Fests" and "European Premiere" in IDFA, in the same year.

Context and background

The Gaza Strip

The Gaza Strip is an area situated between Israel and Egypt on 365 km2 of land. In 2022 the population is estimated at 2.166.269 people. [11] The history and current situation of the Gaza Strip are both very complex.

Palestine, in which Israel and the Occupied Territories are situated, has been under Roman, Arab, Ottoman, British, Egyptian and Israeli rule. [12] After the Balfour Declaration in 1917, in which the Zionists were promised a Jewish homeland in the state of Palestine and the protection of the non-Jewish communities. [13] The Peel Commission in 1937 suggested a two-state solution. [14]

On 14 May 1948 Ben-Gurion announced the establishment of the state of Israel as a state based on a Jewish identity and democracy. After the 1948 war Israel gained 78% of the Palestine mandate and the Gaza Strip was under Egyptian rule. [15] In 1967 the Six-Day War broke out. Israel gained control of the Occupied Territories (Gaza Strip, West Bank and East Jerusalem). [16]

Just before signing The Oslo Accords in 1993, Israel established several checkpoints between the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. This unabled Palestinians travelling between the two areas. Consequences were most severe in the Gaza Strip, where a lot more people were dependant on Israeli jobs. Unemployment rose and living conditions worsened. Adding to the living conditions was the closing of the border each time Gaza launched an attack on Israel. This meant no goods could come in the Gaza Strip, like food, electricity, water, medication. [17]

In 2005 Israel withdrew settlers from the Gaza Strip and established a security ring around it. This caused a lot of escalation in the conflict between Israel and Hamas. [18] Hamas is a political wing, established in 1987 during the First Intifada, of the Muslim Brotherhood. [19]

After the establishment of the state of Israel approximately 750.000 Palestinians had fled because of massacres or fear of massacres in their villiages. In 2022 refugees form 65,3% of the population in Gaza Strip. Unemployment rates in Gaza Strip are 39,1% for men, 67,4% for women and 73,9% for youth. The percentage of the population under 29 is 68% and the percentage of people that is foodinsecure is 63%. The poverty rate is 53%. [20]              

Surfing in the Gaza Strip

Significance of surfing

The ocean is among the last things that people in the Gaza Strip can enjoy. People surfing in the gaza strip find their way to freedom from their political and social situation in the aquatic activity. In this way, surfing is part of their daily lifes and their culture. Surfing takes a very important role for the Palestinian population in the Gaza Strip, is have been transmited generationally and takes an important meaning in the relation to their homeland. [6][10]

Surfing projects

In 2005 the Surfing 4 Peace cooperation initiative was established by Doc Paskowitz. [21][22] He donated surfboards to Israeli Arab surfers and organised a surfing contest. One of the two surfers involved with the cooperation from Gaza was Mohammed Abu Jayab who later on is involved with the Gaza Surf Club. Surfing 4 Peace keeps working with local surfers in Gaza Strip to establish the sport and a clubhouse there. Another initiative to support the local surfers is Gaza Surf Relief. [22] Surfing is a way to stand up against the authorities and to escape every day living conditions in Gaza. In 2010 Surfing 4 Peace donated 30 surfboards to the local surfers in Gaza. It took over two years and a lot of negotiations to get the surfboards into the Gaza Strip. Matt Olsen, one of the ambassadors of Surfing 4 Peace is also involved with the establishment of the Gaza Surf Club in 2008. [21][22]

Difficulties

The political conflict and turmoil, the scarce supplies, and the lossing of right over their lands, makes it difficult for Gazans to surf.[6]

See also

References

  1. ^ "TIFF: Meet the Young Middle Eastern Hopefuls of 'Gaza Surf Club'". The Hollywood Reporter. 7 September 2016. Retrieved 7 September 2016.
  2. ^ "Oscar bait? Twelve films set to make a splash at Toronto". BBC News. 7 September 2016. Retrieved 7 September 2016.
  3. ^ "Gaza Surf Club". TIFF. 7 September 2016. Retrieved 7 September 2016.
  4. ^ Club, The Gaza Surf. "The Gaza Surf Club". The Gaza Surf Club. Retrieved 17 May 2023.
  5. ^ Corps, Explore. "Explore Corps - Gaza Surf Club, Monterey Surf Camp". Explore Corps. Retrieved 17 May 2023.
  6. ^ a b c d e f Spiker, Rabia (15 April 2022). "Gaza Surf Club: Catching Waves in a War Zone". Alchemiya. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
  7. ^ MAGNETFILM (12 September 2018), Watch Gaza Surf Club Online | Vimeo On Demand, retrieved 16 May 2023
  8. ^ www.oberon.nl, Oberon Amsterdam, Gaza Surf Club (2016) - Philip Gnadt, Mickey Yamine | IDFA, retrieved 17 May 2023
  9. ^ a b www.oberon.nl, Oberon Amsterdam, Gaza Surf Club (2016) - Philip Gnadt, Mickey Yamine | IDFA, retrieved 17 May 2023
  10. ^ a b "Gaza Surf Club". Revista Periferias. Retrieved 17 May 2023.
  11. ^ "Report to the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee 3 May 2023" (PDF). https://unsco.unmissions.org/. {{cite web}}: External link in |website= (help)CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  12. ^ Akbarzadeh, Shahram (2022). Middle East politics and international relations. Crisis zone (2nd ed.). London: Routledge. p. 22.
  13. ^ Cleveland, William L.; Bunton, Martin (2018). A history of the Middle East (6th ed.). New York: Routledge. pp. 231–234.
  14. ^ Clancy-Smith, Julia; Clancy, Charles D. (2014). The modern Middle East and North Africa. A history in documents. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 188.
  15. ^ Anderson, Betty S. (2016). A history of the modern Middle East. Rulers, rebels, and rogues. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press. pp. 282–289.
  16. ^ Akbarzadeh, Shahram (2022). Middle East politics and international relations. Crisis zone (2nd ed.). London: Routledge. p. 42.
  17. ^ Anderson, Betty S. (2016). A history of the modern Middle East. Rulers, rebels, and rogues. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press. p. 439.
  18. ^ Akbarzadeh, Shahram (2022). Middle East politics and international relations. Crisis zone (2nd ed.). London: Routledge. p. 70.
  19. ^ Anderson, Betty S. (2016). A history of the modern Middle East. Rulers, rebels, and rogues. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press. p. 349.
  20. ^ "UNSCO Report to the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee" (PDF). https://unsco.unmissions.org/. 3 May 2023. {{cite web}}: External link in |website= (help)CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  21. ^ a b Gartside, Luke (12 December 2019). "Between struggle & rubble; The besieged surfers of Gaza". Wavelength volume 255.
  22. ^ a b c Olsen, Matt (27 September 2012). "The Gaza Surf Club. The troubled times of an unlikely surf community". www.surfer.com.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
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