Since the third cease fire between Israel and Hamas, the residents of the southern Israeli town of Sderot have endured some 260+ missile attacks from the Gaza Strip. As the Sderot Media Center notes, "[m]issile fire against Sderot and the western Negev began in January 2001...The Kassam rockets have claimed the lives of 28 Israelis; 9 of which were residents of Sderot, and 3 of whom were children. In addition, over 600 Israeli citizens have been injured."
Kassam (or Qassam) rockets are the preferred type of missile used by Hamas to indiscriminately fire on Sderot and other Israeli population centers. Though lacking in accuracy, these missiles have the capability of inflicting death and injury on its targets.
As Israel's actions in Operation Cast Lead earned scorn--much of it deserved--scant attention was paid to the citizens of Sderot. While this serves as no justification for the innocent among the Palestinian lives cut short by the IDF, the people of Sderot have turned to art to make their story known.
The Sderot Media Center (SMC) Community Treatment Theater will launch its first theater production of "Children of Qassam Avenue" in the Sderot Youth Center this Wednesday.
[...]
"Children of Qassam Avenue" is based on the true-life rocket experiences of the Sderot actresses, all of whom are Sderot natives, and have experienced post-trauma symptoms arising from eight years of Gaza Qassam attacks.
"We took our personal experiences of everyday life in Sderot and incorporated them into the play," said SMC Theater Project director Livnat Shlesinger, whose childhood friend, Ella Abuksis was killed by a Qassam rocket four years ago in Sderot. "This project has instilled a sense of confidence in these Sderot actresses and has given them new tools to deal with the stress and pressure of living in a rocket zone."
(Yedioth Ahronoth)
The play is part of the Sderot Media Center's drama therapy for Israeli teenagers. The goal of the drama therapy project "is to first provide treatment therapy to Sderot youth through the art of theater. The second goal is to allow these youth to share their life under rocket terror with Israelis and the international community." (link)
It would be naive to think that children's theater could alone help us see the conflict through the eyes of the afflicted--be they Israeli or Palestinian. But art has a way of helping us do so, and I hope this play does exactly that.