Shabab Jabaliya Football Club in Gaza Flattened by Israeli Forces, Now a Camp for the Displaced
The renowned Shabab Jabaliya Football Club in northern Gaza, once a thriving sports institution, has been reduced to ruins following an Israeli ground assault in May 2024. The club’s five-a-side football pitch now hosts a temporary camp for over 120 displaced Palestinians, renamed “Sesame Street Camp” by a donor.
Founded in 1994, the club—also known as the “Northern Rebels”—was a key competitor in the Palestinian Premier League. Its once-modern facilities included training halls, a gym, and a three-storey administration building. Club director Walid Shaheen estimates that the destruction caused nearly $1 million in damages, representing a personal and professional loss cultivated since 2012.
The conflict has taken a heavy human toll on the club’s members. Striker Muhammad al-Malfooh, his uncle and coach Nihad al-Malfooh, and several players were killed in Israeli attacks, with survivors recounting that the men were initially allowed to return home before being targeted.
Other fallen members include board official Muhammad Hijazi, coach Deeb Barakat, and key players like Mustafa Shaheen, Muhannad Arouq, and Jihad Qaddous. Youth players such as Karim Hammad, Wahib Ouda, and Ahmed Mansour also perished.
Former captain Ahmad Amira, who returned to the ruins after the January 2025 ceasefire, described the visit as heartbreaking. “It felt like a part of me was taken away,” he said. Fan Abu Khaled, displaced from Jabaliya, recalled walking past tanks at the club’s shattered entrance.
Though Shabab Jabaliya once nurtured top talent—such as its first goalkeeper Ramzi Saleh, who played professionally for Egypt’s Al Ahly SC—the future remains uncertain. Most players and board members are now displaced, and Director Shaheen noted that rebuilding is not a current priority, as Gaza’s residents focus on survival amid a humanitarian crisis.
He also criticized the global sports community’s silence. “No organization, not even FIFA, has reached out or condemned the destruction,” he said.
For Gaza’s sports community, the road to recovery goes far beyond rebuilding stadiums—it’s about preserving a lost legacy of hope, talent, and unity.
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