Imagine this: you are facing one of the most horrifying genocides in modern history. You go through every day not knowing if you will be able to eat, drink water, or take a shower. Tomorrow is not a guarantee. You live in consistent fear. Through all of this, you must soldier on and document the evilness that you, your family, your friends, your neighbors, and everyone you have ever known are going through. You have to hold up your martyrs to the camera, asking the world to believe you. This is the reality of the Palestinian people.
For more than 70 days, we have mourned, grieved, and sobbed to the videos, which the braved journalists have been sharing. We have seen ourselves in the daughter’s morning of the loss of her mother, fathers breaking down over their children, and mothers not letting go of their children. We saw the IDF forcing families out of their homes and taking their cherished pets with them.
Here are things Palestinian said that will echo in our hearts forever:
“She is the soul of my soul”
“Soul of my soul”, says the bearded man grieving his granddaughter, Reem. Reem and her grandfather were very close. She spent every waking hour in his arms. They lived together and even shared the same birthday, December 23rd. Her grandpa found her dead alongside her brother, Tareq.
“They seek revenge through our children”
Wael Dahdouh is a Palestinian Journalist and a correspondent for Al Jazeera in Gaza. A heartbreaking video circulated on social media, capturing the journalist’s farewell to his family. An Israeli airstrike targeting the house they sought refuge in the Nuseirat refugee camp martyred his wife, son, daughter, and grandchildren.
“I took 580 needles to get pregnant and have him”
Any woman who has been through infertility knows it is excruciating. All of the negative tests, the planning, and the waiting is a rough journey. All of the tests, treatments, and needles are exhausting. It is all worth it when you get to hold your baby close to your chest. But, after 580 needles, a Palestinian woman mourns the child that she desperately longed to have.
“I recognize her by her hair”
These are the words of a Palestinian girl after the martyrdom of her mother in an Israeli airstrike on their home in Gaza. Hair is a huge bonding point for mothers and daughters . The young girl can recognize her mother from a single strand of her hair.
“Thank you, Paramedic, We love you”
Amid the chaos, destruction, and violence, two Palestinian children thank the paramedic over and over again. Even though these children have never known peace, they still keep their sweet and gentle innocence.
“Your Grandma is 80, she was displaced twice. You are 8 years old, you were displaced once. God willing it will not happen again.”
Captured in a video, a mother and a daughter are walking down a Palestinian street, after leaving their homes. She talks to her daughter about her ancestors and continues to pray for their safe return to their homes.