PHOTOGRAPHS of bombed public shelters, food being cooked on makeshift hearths, and leaflets with ominous threats to leave Gaza falling from the skies pop up unceasingly on Palestinian lawyer and activist Ahmed Bassiuni's X (formerly Twitter) handle. On October 8, a day after the deadly Hamas attack in Israel, Ahmed was one of the thousands of Gazans to receive terse air-dropped text messages from the Israeli government, asking them to evacuate and leave Gaza immediately. At the time he thought the messages were absurd. But deep within, Ahmed knew that things were about to get much, much worse. And they did.
Soon, bombs came hurtling down on residential areas in the Gaza Strip. The enclaves turned to rubble. It has been over six weeks since. The duration has seen over 15,000 Gazans killed. About 60 per cent of these casualties have been women and children. Ahmed has, however, managed to survive one of the most brutal assaults on Palestinian soil in his lifetime.
On November 20, Ahmed survived the massacre at Dar Al-Basiouni in Beit Hanoun, a city located to the northeast of the Strip. "My family and I are still alive," he said in a social media post to reassure his loved ones. But on November 25, on the first day of the 'truce'-a four-day ceasefire for exchange of hostages and prisoners-Ahmed got news of death.
As both sides braced for the exchange, Ahmed announced the death of his nephew Diab, along with his cousins Yasser and Adam. "My sister's son (Diab) is a 15-year-old child. The army arrested him the day before yesterday on Salah al-Din Street while he was travelling with his family from northern Gaza". His brother, Yamen, has been missing for two weeks.
Ahmed is among the thousands of people living in nightmarish conditions for nearly two months since Israel's offensive.
Bu hikaye Outlook dergisinin December 11,2023 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye Outlook dergisinin December 11,2023 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
Soft Ruins
'Soft Ruins' is a chapter within the long-term ongoing project \"When Spring Never Comes\", an expansive exploration of memory, identity and displacement in the aftermath of exile within contemporary global politics. It reflects on how the journey as an asylum seeker in Europe mirrors the instability and threats of life under dictatorship, amidst rising right-wing movements and shifting power dynamics, where both certainty and identity are redefined
Building Beyond Homes: Provident Housing's Transformative Approach
Provident Housing leads in crafting thoughtfully designed homes that cater to modern homebuyers' evolving needs. With a focus on timely delivery, sustainability, and innovative, customer-centric solutions, the company sets new benchmarks. In this exclusive interview, Mallanna Sasalu, CEO of Provident Housing, shares insights into the company's strategies, upcoming projects, and vision for India's housing future.
Syria Speaks
A Syrian graffiti artist-activist's tale of living through bombings, gunshots and displacement
The Burdened
Yemen, once a beautiful land identified with the Queen of Sheba, is now one of the worst ongoing humanitarian disasters of modern times
Sculpting In Time
Documentaries such as Intercepted and Songs of Slow Burning Earth grapple with the Russian occupation beyond displays of desolation
The Story Won't Die
Is Israel's triumphalism over its land grab in Syria realistic? The hard reality is-Israel now has Al-Qaeda as a next-door neighbour
Against the Loveless World
In times of war, love exists as a profound act of defiance
Soul of My Soul
What does it mean to continue to create art during a genocide?
in Dancing the Glory of Monsters
By humanising the stories of those affected by war, poverty and displacement, Buuma hopes to foster empathy and inspire action
All the President's Men
Co-author of All The President's Men and one of the two Washington Post journalists (the other was Carl Berntstein) who broke the Watergate scandal that brought down the President Richard Nixon administration in the United States in 1974, Bob Woodward's recent book War was on top of The New York Times Bestseller list, even above John Grisham.
