A touching song

In Gaza City, Palestine, Just standing by the sea Here I was born a refugee, But no refuge could they find for me. Well I’ve been trapped here all my days Three borders closed surrounding me And soldiers sitting in the sea And bombs a-falling down on me. And there’s no place to hide, My home isn’t even safe inside - Nowhere to run, to play, Where I can be a child: Just for one minute, Just an hour of my troubled days, Let this flying kite take back the sky for me. This kite that’s flying over me Seeing things that I can’t see, Saying all the things that I would say If I could leave this place; No walls could stop me dreaming, No lies could lock me down, And all the words in all the world Couldn’t stop me from roaming around. This kite that’s flying over me, It’s just paper string and wood, And a picture that I painted And I hope it’s understood. Will you carry all my dreaming up towards the sun, Will you show the world that freedom means the same to everyone. All it needs is the right wind blowing Just one breath from the sea, And where bombs and bullets have been falling I send my kite soaring. It may seem a simple thing Just holding on to a piece of string – But don’t forget I’ve been holding on For all of my short years, And my mother and my father Held on long before my time. Just for one minute, Just an hour of my troubled days, Let this flying kite take back the sky for me.

 

Huda Skaik
July 7 2025

In the besieged Gaza Strip, three professions have emerged as a lifeline, their practitioners heroic in their efforts to alleviate the worst of the humanitarian catastrophe that is unfolding under Israel’s constant attacks on civilians and civic infrastructure.

The rescuers, the healers, and the witnesses — civil defense responders making unimaginable sacrifices to try and save people from the rubble of bombed buildings; medical professionals fighting an impossible battle with poor supplies in hospitals; and journalists risking their lives to expose the truth — are all supporting the entire population enduring genocide and famine.

According to the Health Ministry, the Israeli military has killed at least 113 civil defense responders, around 228 journalists, and at least 1,411 medical workers since October 7, 2023.

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