Brilio.net - The saying goes, difficult times always give birth to great people. This is what happened amidst the raging armed conflict in Gaza. Even though war produces destruction, sadness and revenge, this period of crisis actually gave birth to a brilliant figure who later became the talk of the town because of his recent achievements.
He is Hussam Al-Attar, a 15 year old teenager who was nicknamed 'Newton from Gaza' after successfully creating electricity from wind using simple equipment while in refugee camps.
With the help of an old wind turbine, Hussam was able to create a power plant and succeeded in lighting up the refugee camps in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip which is currently blockaded by Israel.
Newton's story from Gaza
middleeastmonitor.com
Reported by brlio.net from the middleeastmonitor.com page, Tuesday (2/4), it is known that Hussam was a student at the Jabel Mukaber School in northern Gaza before Israel launched a devastating attack on the besieged area on October 7.
He and his family were left homeless after their area Beit Lahia to Al-Nasr was bombarded and devastated by military attacks.
Hussam and his family fled to Khan Yunis on foot, until they arrived in Rafah near the Egyptian border which was used as a refugee camp.
"I looked at my twin nephews and saw only fear in their eyes. They felt lonely in the darkness inside the tent. So I thought bring joy to them, and brighten up this place," Hussam told Quds Press quoted from middleeastmonitor.com.
Newton's story from Gaza
middleeastmonitor.com
Previously, for 20 days, the Rafah refugee camp was known to be without electricity. From there, Hussam came up with the idea of how to produce electrical energy to light the refugee tents of Gaza residents in Rafah.
"The idea of taking advantage of cold weather has inspired me to turn it into a source of warmth and heat," said Hussam Al-Attar.
When starting his experiment, Hussam initially only had an old fan that he brought with him to dispel the darkness in the camp. He assembled the old fan to convert kinetic energy from wind into electrical energy.
His first attempt failed and it took three tries for the idea to work. Hussam used the turbine to generate electricity by installing it on one of the iron poles in the camp.
"I managed to light the place occasionally, because it lights up when there is wind, and when the wind slows down, darkness falls over the camp," he said.
Hussam notes that before the outbreak of the war, he was able to create underwater lights and safety zippers for wireless door closing.
"The refugees in the camp nicknamed me 'Newton from Gaza', in appreciation for my efforts to illuminate this refugee camp. But I still want to learn," said Hussam.
Newton's story from Gaza
middleeastmonitor.com
Meanwhile, Hussam's mother admitted that she was proud of her son. He said his son really liked science and often carried out experiments at home since he was little.
"He was talented from a young age. He loved tinkering with everything he could get his hands on, and he made something useful, and families also asked him for help repairing their electrical equipment," he said.
"This is a Palestinian generation that will not be defeated. This is a generation that seeks life amidst darkness and death," he said.
"I love life, and I love the details. I want to be an inventor and Palestine can't possibly die in me," Hussam said.
He hopes that Hussam can become a great inventor who will benefit the community and its cause.