What Freedom Feels Like After Gaza

Gaza's Genocide: A Normalized Hellhole

The genocide in Gaza has left a lasting impact on the survivors, who now live in exile, struggling to come to terms with the trauma they experienced. Omar and Saleem, two Palestinian friends who survived the genocide, share their experiences of freedom in London, highlighting the contrast between their normal lives and the hellhole they left behind.

Omar, who arrived in Dublin, was initially hesitant to leave Gaza, fearing that he would be arrested or beaten. He hid his refugee passport, which has a different color from others, and was treated differently by airport staff. Saleem, who flew from Berlin to London, was also subjected to harsh treatment by border guards, who shouted at him loudly and accused him of not being a British citizen.

The normalization of the genocide is a stark reality that Omar and Saleem face every day. They are forced to hide their refugee passports, which are a constant reminder of their status as survivors of the genocide. They are treated differently by airport staff, who view them with suspicion and hostility.

The contrast between their normal lives and the hellhole they left behind is a stark reminder of the impact of the genocide on the survivors. Omar and Saleem's experiences highlight the struggles they face in their daily lives, from hiding their refugee passports to dealing with the normalization of the genocide.

News from Palestine

A week before I visited London, I was stuck on the road from Ramallah to Jerusalem for four hours. It is a drive that usually takes 20 minutes in normal cities. It was the second day of the Muslim holiday of Eid, and many families were on their way to visit relatives. Still, the army decided to close the gate without prior notice, and hundreds of cars were stuck all evening, with no way to move forward or backwards.

Mothers decided to leave their cars and set off on foot, weaving through cars and leading their children, who were dressed in their Eid clothing, to nearby villages. Desperate drivers of different ages, some of them maybe on their way to the hospital, were stuck for hours, while no one told them how long it would take.

There are now nearly 1,000 documented barriers in cities and towns in the West Bank, gates at the exits of villages and towns, creating ghettos that make daily life impossible for more than three million Palestinians. The army closes and opens the gates on a whim. Palestinians have to manage life around it and find alternative ways.

Night Raids

In the West Bank, I speak with a young mother of five in the village of Tell. This village made the news after a settler raid that ended with the killing of four Palestinians, as well as an Israeli army officer and a settlement security guard. Since the incident, Naheel's family and her five children have not left the house. Not even for the yard, she says. They all sit in one room, awake all night, and go to sleep in the morning.

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Nights are a time of settler and army raids, and we must stay awake, she tells me. They update each other by WhatsApp on where the night raids are happening. They all know there is no one to protect them.

What do you tell your five-year-old son? I ask her. I tell my five-year-old son the truth. I do not hide reality from him. If there is something he cannot fully understand, I explain it more simply. I tell him that the settlers have come into the area and might attack people.

When he asks why they beat or attacked people, I try to explain it through a simple story that he can understand. I do not want him to be disconnected from reality, because he could find himself in the middle of such an event, and that would affect him even more.