GAZA, PALESTINE - JUNE 4, 2025: As Israeli attacks and a crippling blockade continue in the Gaza Strip since October 7, 2023, a group of Palestinians is turning to music in an attempt to escape the horrors of war. In the heart of Gaza City’s Rimal neighborhood, where tents have replaced homes, the sound of musical instruments rises defiantly above the echoes of airstrikes and drones. Despite widespread destruction and the collapse of daily life, including artistic and cultural activities, a group of musicians and instructors has launched a small mobile music course. In this makeshift setting, young Palestinians are learning to play instruments such as the oud, guitar, violin, ney, and kemenche, using music as a form of psychological rehabilitation. Ismail Dawoud, a former oud instructor at the Edward Said Music Conservatory, explained that they are trying to bring moments of joy and relief to children and youth, while also sending a message to the world that Palestinians are a people who cherish life. Raid Dehshan, one of the students learning the oud, described music as a form of psychological therapy. He noted that through playing, he forgets about the war, the destruction, the bloodshed, and the hunger they endure. He said music takes him out of the war mindset and into another world. In a city where homes, schools, hospitals, and cultural centers have been reduced to rubble, Dehshan emphasized that their resistance continues despite the devastation. He said that they remain on their land and resist the occupation because it is their home and they have nowhere else to go. Israel, rejecting international calls for a ceasefire, has pursued a genocidal war in Gaza since October 2023, killing nearly 54,900 Palestinians, most of them women and children. Aid agencies have warned about the risk of famine among the enclave's more than 2 million inhabitants. Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza. Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war crimes against civilians in the enclave. Reporting by Anas Zeyad Fteha // Writing by Mustafa Tuncer