00:00A Gaza teacher turned toy maker is bringing moments of comfort to children living through war.
00:07Shirin Al-Kadi says she began making dolls after years of blockade and restrictions made toys difficult to import into
00:14Gaza.
00:15What started as something from her own children soon grew into a small business.
00:20Small families looked for simple ways to bring joy to children affected by the conflict.
00:27The idea of producing and designing toys came after three years of blockade and restrictions when toys were no longer
00:34being imported.
00:35I thought I would make dolls for my own children so they could play and have fun.
00:39Later the toys became popular and in demand so I decided to expand the business and bring them to market.
00:48Al-Kadi says many children lost their toys under the rubble of destroyed homes and during repeated displacement.
00:55She describes the dolls as a lifeline, something that can bring smiles back to children who have endured years of
01:01trauma.
01:04After three years of war the children have no toys.
01:07Their toys were buried under the rubble of their homes.
01:11Having been displaced several times, most have returned to their homes but their toys were lost beneath the ruins.
01:17So dolls came as a lifeline for the children, bringing smiles to their faces.
01:28Her story highlights not only the daily hardship faced by families in Gaza
01:32but also the resilience of people trying to restore a sense of normal life for children in the middle of
01:39the war.
01:40So
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