KHAN YUNIS, Gaza Strip — Inside the cars of the train that have been decorated with Palestinian flags, colored balloons, flowers and cartoons, dozens of children sit on wooden benches reading storybooks. This is the first "knowledge train" that visits villages in the southern Gaza Strip to encourage children to read and to develop their linguistic and creative skills.

Khalil Fares, the director of Shorouq wa Amal Center, which is affiliated with the Culture and Free Thought Association (CFTA) in Khan Yunis, told Al-Monitor, “The knowledge train is the first initiative launched by the center in cooperation with education associations affiliated with the CFTA and others like Asdaa Recreation Center. The latter lent the train to the center as a contribution to encourage children to learn and read.”

Fares said, “The knowledge train took off on March 15 and will maintain its activities for a month and a half. The initiative is set to end on April 30. This annual activity is organized by Shorouq wa Amal Center. We sought a rare and unfamiliar way to attract children to read, and this is how the idea of the train emerged. Children really warmed up to it. The train targets around 200 children per day whose ages range between 6 and 12 and who are eager to learn new things. The train provides them with [the opportunity to access new] knowledge and improves their behavior, encouraging a special and cultivated generation.”

He added, “The train stops at all public and UNRWA-affiliated schools in Khan Yunis and also heads to remote areas in the east of the governorate. The organization coordinates with the Ministry of Education and Higher Education and civil associations to determine the times and places of the train visits so that the children are notified in advance.”