Parkour in Gaza
When Gaza is in the news, the stories are often about the ongoing Palestinian-Israeli conflict. But in September 2012, Reuters photographer Mohammed Salem shot a series of photographs about a different part of Gaza life: sport. More specifically, the niche sport of parkour.
Developed in France, parkour involves impressive flips and jumps over obstacles. These Palestinian boys train in cemeteries and former Israeli settlements.
Young men practice parkour in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip.
The boys belong to a group called Gaza Parkour Team, and there are 13 of them altogether.
Members of the group are aged between 12 and 23.
Parkour is an obscure sport in Gaza, and people are not generally familiar with it, said Reuters photographer Mohammed Salem.
The discipline was developed in France.
Boys practice the sport in a variety of sites in Gaza – cemeteries, parks, former Jewish settlements, and UN-run schools after closing time.
The youths who train the boys in parkour were inspired by TV shows, and travelled to France to watch the sport there.
One boy with a bandaged foot flips upside down while practicing parkour.
Two youths try out their moves.
