“I tend to spread positive energy,” Hassouna says. “But when the war started, there was no positive energy.”
His darkest hour came on Feb. 12.
The Israeli military unleashed heavy bombings to provide cover for commandos during a successful hostage rescue mission. At least 74 Palestinians were killed in that bombing campaign, according to Gaza health officials.
Hassouna’s mother, father, brother, sister-in-law and young nieces and nephew were among them. They were killed as they slept in the home where they were sheltering. It was the one night Hassouna happened to sleep over at a friend’s house.
“Now I am by myself,” he says. “Why should I live my life without a family?”
I didn’t quote the part of the article subheaded Collecting the shreds of his family – they meant shreds literally. Truly awful.
@GnuLinuxDude sheesh you weren’t kidding.
I don’t even have the words for this. That poor guy. Losing a loved one is terrible at the best of times but that. Having to look through body parts to see if you recognise any. It’s unspeakable.
Hassouna considers the Israeli perspective.
“You wanted to retrieve two elderly prisoners, it’s their right. Aren’t they humans? They’re humans,” Hassouna says. “A child is also a human. Just as you want to recognize the rights of the human whose life you want to save, you destroyed the lives of many people who had nothing to do with the whole war.”
Yes, killing 74 to rescue 2, definitely worth it. /s It just shows how much the IDF values the lives of Palestinians.
Mission accomplished 👍
In defiance of those who would use your death as weakness. Like I get it either way, deny the genocide deniars any victory you can, if you’re able to withstand.
Palestinian lives matter.
In a few days/weeks we’ll hear about Hassouna’s death. By now, we should all know that influencers, bloggers, journalists and their families are especially targeted by Israel.
I want these Palestinians to stop showing their faces and be as anonymous as they can, while still telling their stories.
