The genocide in Gaza has surpassed 300 days. For ten months, every moment, a people are being slaughtered, a city is being destroyed.
As Gaza endures one of the most severe genocides in history before our very eyes, we are left struggling. We have often asked, "What can we do?" and have frequently felt ashamed of our helplessness.
We marched when we could, shouted slogans until our voices gave out, gathered, stayed up all night, and initiated boycotts. Yet, our efforts neither satisfied us nor halted the genocide in Gaza. While Islamic countries and all other states could do little more than condemn Israel, what could individuals do?
Moreover, we were faced with the slander that "Palestinians sold their land." Of course, the ancestors of the Palestinian people did not sell their homeland. However, this lie spread like a poisonous vine, quickly infiltrating society at the speed of social media. Even the children of those who chanted "Down with Israel" were unfortunately drawn into the trap set for the people of Gaza by influencers like Oğuzhan Uğur.
Our real helplessness lay here. We failed to recognize Israel's irregular warfare tactics. We need to confront the background of what is happening in Palestine, why this issue should also be our cause, and the stark reality of how Israel renders the rest of the world ineffective.
Under Zionist control, the cinema, series, and digital content platforms produce for the "Holocaust Industry," while Israel has rendered the voice of the Palestinian people and Gaza, in particular, unheard, thereby laying the sociological groundwork for the genocide that has now spanned ten months.
Last week, Philosopher Taha Abdurrahman gave three valuable conferences in Istanbul and Ankara, making the following observation about the people of Gaza: “The Palestinian, the Gazan, is a person of the world. They are actually chosen among all people. They have been chosen to undertake two missions on behalf of all humanity. The first is to 'renew human values,' and the second is to 'liberate people around the world.' This is the duty of the people of Gaza.”
Prof. Taha Abdurrahman emphasized that Muslim peoples need to liberate themselves mentally and intellectually, beyond mere physical freedom. We must realize that the people of Gaza and Palestine are not just defending their homeland; they are laying down their lives against a war waged on all humanity, especially Muslims, through genocide.
This is a sacred burden, and if we want to shoulder it, we may need to go back to the beginning. Now, let me tell you about three books from Ketebe: a novel, a memoir, and an essay collection.
Actually, I decided to write this piece after recently reviewing the book *Light in Gaza - Writings Born of Fire*.
1. *From Jerusalem to Beirut* by Emin el-Hüseyni
The memoirs of the Mufti of Jerusalem, Hacı Emin el-Hüseyni, who served as an Ottoman army officer in Istanbul during World War I, returned to his homeland to start a resistance movement when Palestine was occupied by the British, and led an unyielding struggle against the imperialists. Published in October 2023, this memoir, in my opinion, hasn't received the recognition it deserves. It documents the first days of the 115-year occupation normalized by the world as the "Palestinian issue," from the local to the general, the occupation of villages, diplomatic moves, the resistance of Jerusalem, and all the plans implemented by the British to establish an Israeli state in the region through political, economic, and media power.
2. *The Woman from Tantura* by Radwa Ashour
Radwa Ashour’s novel, which continues from where the memoir of Emin el-Hüseyni leaves off, primarily tells the stories of Palestinian women and resists the occupation through writing. Official records show that Tantura, a coastal village, was occupied on May 21, 1948, just three days after Safed. The novel takes the reader into the daily life of Palestinians before Nakba, with Rukayya narrating her life in the coastal village. The subsequent bloody occupation, losses, hopes, migrations, the Sabra and Shatila massacre, and the experiences of the Palestinian people over 50 years are depicted through a masterful and chronological narrative.
3. *Light in Gaza - Writings Born of Fire*
The third book gained attention as a tool that broke the intellectual blockade while the physical embargo on Gaza continued for years and made an impact worldwide when first published in 2021. Recently translated into Turkish by Ketebe, the book takes readers on an enlightening journey to understand what is happening through the lens of Gaza and reminds us of Gaza's critical role in the Palestinian liberation struggle. The most notable essay, "Gaza asks: When will this end?" by Professor and Poet Refaat Alareer of Gaza Islamic University, emphasizes that “We have no option but to heal, stand back up, and continue the fight. Surrendering to occupation is a betrayal of humanity and all struggles worldwide.” Refaat Alareer, who was martyred in an Israeli bombing on December 6, 2023, highlighted in his essay why he was targeted as a writer and poet, demonstrating that Israel's pursuit extends beyond armed resistance to the very existence of Palestinians.
Reading these three books in sequence opened new horizons for me. Despite the pain and difficulties endured by Gazan parents, their surrender and, again referring to the Martyr Poet Refaat Alareer, as Gaza continues to fight for survival, we must also strive for its resolution.
