A Gaza library gives Palestinian children a chance to escape into literature

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Most of the visitors to the library are children and young adults who rarely have access to books at home. (Supplied)
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Most of the visitors to the library are children and young adults who rarely have access to books at home. (Supplied)
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Updated 02 July 2021
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A Gaza library gives Palestinian children a chance to escape into literature

  • Set up after the 2014 war, the Edward Said Public Library offers Gaza residents free access to timeless works
  • Shaken but not bowed by the latest war, library founder Mosab Abu Toha dreams of opening many more branches

DUBAI: Picking through the debris of what had been his university’s English department, before it was pulverized by an Israeli airstrike, Mosab Abu Toha brushed away a fine film of dust coating a book he found among the rubble.

The battered volume was an anthology of classic American literature, featuring the work of great writers such as Ernest Hemingway and Walt Whitman.

The poignancy of this discovery, among the ruins of the Islamic University of Gaza in the summer of 2014, when Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas last fought a major war, has stuck with Abu Toha ever since.




Abu Toha wants Palestinian children to discover the vast world of literature, and grow beyond the mental and physical confines of Gaza. (Supplied)

The emotions came flooding back during the 11 tumultuous days in May this year when hostilities between the old belligerents flared up anew.

A 28-year-old poet and teacher of the English language, who has lived through four significant wars in Gaza since 2008, Abu Toha saw an urgent need to protect public access to learning resources and classic works of literature amid the stifling blockade of the territory and the routine bombardments it endures.

It was in the aftermath of the 51-day war in 2014 — “the hardest of them all,” as he recalls — that Abu Toha began to receive donations, organized through social media, that laid the foundations for what would become the Edward Said Public Library.




Abu Toha: These kids are learning new things and they are going to be better than me. (Supplied)

Named in honor of the late Palestinian scholar and theoretician, Gaza’s first and only English-language library opened its doors in 2017 with the help of international fundraisers. Now its two branches, in Beit Lahiya and Gaza City, house more than 2,000 volumes, most of them classic works of literature.

The venues have become a refuge amid the chaos, places where young Palestinians can freely access the timeless works of authors such as William Shakespeare, Leo Tolstoy, Dr. Seuss, John Le Carre, Herman Melville, Mahmoud Darwish and, of course, Edward Said.

Abu Toha likens the library to a candle in the dark, offering an escape from the harsh realities of life in Gaza.




Mosab Abu Toha hopes young Palestinians will channel their daily traumas into rewarding creative pursuits. (Supplied)

“Many children seem happy in the street,” he told Arab News. “They will smile at you — but deep inside they are traumatized. If you sit with them and ask them some questions, and you dig deep inside their subconscious, you would know that these children have nightmares at night.

“These children need to have some space to understand that what they are living through is not normal. What they are living in is abnormal.”

Abu Toha’s passion for reading and the English language stems from a childhood during which he was surrounded by books. After obtaining a bachelor’s degree in language teaching, he taught English classes at UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) schools.




The library is a place where young Palestinians can freely access works by William Shakespeare, Leo Tolstoy, and John Le Carre. (Supplied)

A major turning point came when he was invited to travel to the US in 2019 as a visiting poet at Harvard University as part of the international Scholars at Risk program. It was the first time he had ever left the Gaza Strip.

“I think my experiences — especially as a kid who never traveled outside of Gaza until he was 27, someone who doesn’t have an airport in his country, someone who doesn’t have a seaport, someone who has never stopped hearing the noise of the drones in the sky and the shelling of tanks — pushed me to discover my own talent in writing creatively,” Abu Toha said of his literary inspirations.




Edward Said was not only a Palestinian but a global citizen, and naming the library after him is an honor for us, says Abu Toha. (Supplied)

He hopes other young Palestinians will likewise channel their daily traumas into rewarding creative pursuits.

“I think it’s very important for young writers to talk about their experiences in different genres, in both Arabic and English,” he said. “It’s a duty. You need to tell the world what you are seeing.”

Most of the visitors to the library are children and young adults, he explained, who rarely have access to books at home.

“It’s not easy to find home libraries in Gaza,” said Abu Toha. “It’s very rare maybe because of the financial circumstances; people can barely put food on their table.

“But some children, when they come to the library they see these books, beautiful tables and chairs, and they want to make use of it.”

The library has become his life’s work. But stocking its shelves has proved to be an endless struggle as a result of the strict blockade, with every shipment of new books detained and thoroughly searched by Israeli customs officials.




“It’s not easy to find home libraries in Gaza,” says Abu Toha. (Supplied)

Nevertheless, thanks to generous donations by overseas supporters, including many authors who provide signed editions of their works, the Edward Said Public Library is richly stocked.

Even Noam Chomsky, the famed American linguist, philosopher and public intellectual, has contributed to its collection, describing the library as “a rare flicker of light and hope for the young people of Gaza.”

The family of Edward Said, who died in 2003 at the age of 67, has also offered its support, sending copies of the scholar’s influential works. Abu Toha never met Said, but feels his is a fitting name for the library.

“He’s a symbol for Palestine, a symbol for freedom,” said Abu Toha. “He’s a public intellectual, not siding with this or that. He said what he thought loudly without fearing the Palestinian Authority or Israel or the American administration.

“I think he’s a prominent example for everyone who seeks justice in this world. I think Edward Said was not only a Palestinian but a global citizen, and naming the library after him is an honor for us.”




Famed American philosopher Noam Chomsky has contributed to the library’s collection. (Supplied)

Both branches of the library were fortunate to survive the fighting in May this year with minimal damage.

“Although it was short, the scale of terrorism, destruction and eviction of families was astonishing. It was very tough,” Abu Toha said. “There was the use of new weaponry and it was really frightening. Even now, when I remember what happened, I can’t believe we’re still alive.”




Mosab Abu Toha looks at a book he found among the rubble following an Israeli airstrike. (Supplied)

To help the community get back on its feet, support the library and fund psychological support programs for families affected by the latest war, he has launched a fundraising campaign that so far has raised about half of its $20,000 goal.

He also wants to open several additional branches of the library so that many more Palestinian children can discover and explore the vast world of literature, put their plight into perspective and, ultimately, grow beyond the mental and physical confines of Gaza.




These children have nightmares at night, says Mosab Abu Toha. (Supplied)

“The only hope that I feel is when I see children coming to the library, reading books, taking part in activities, going back to their homes, telling their parents about what they did in the library, and coming the next day with friends to the library,” Abu Toha said.

“This is the only thing that brings hope to my heart: that these kids are learning new things and they are going to be better than me.”

Twitter: @artprojectdxb


Israeli strikes batter Lebanon, killing five medics

Updated 33 min 38 sec ago
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Israeli strikes batter Lebanon, killing five medics

  • Israel has pushed on with its intense military campaign against Hezbollah, tempering hopes that efforts by a US envoy could lead to an imminent ceasefire
  • Hezbollah said it had fired rockets at Israeli troops east of Khiyam at least four times on Friday

BEIRUT: Israeli strikes battered southern Lebanon and the outskirts of the capital Beirut on Friday, killing at least five medics, as ground troops clashed with Hezbollah fighters in the south.
Israel has pushed on with its intense military campaign against the Iran-backed armed group Hezbollah, tempering hopes that efforts by a US envoy could lead to an imminent ceasefire.
US mediator Amos Hochstein said earlier this week in Beirut that a truce was “within our grasp.” He traveled on to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz before returning to Washington, according to the news outlet Axios.
His trip aimed to end more than a year of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah along Lebanon’s southern border, which escalated dramatically when Israel ramped up its strikes in late September and sent ground troops into Lebanon on Oct. 1.
Israeli troops have fought Hezbollah in a strip of towns all along the border and this week pushed deeper to the edges of Khiyam, a town some six km (four miles) from the border. Hezbollah said it had fired rockets at Israeli troops east of Khiyam at least four times on Friday.
Lebanese security sources told Reuters that Israeli troops had also advanced in a string of villages to the west as well. They said Israel was most likely trying to isolate Khiyam ahead of a major attack on the town.
Israeli strikes on two other villages in southern Lebanon killed a total of five medics from a rescue force affiliated with Hezbollah, the Lebanese health ministry said.
The more than 3,500 people killed by Israeli strikes over the last year include more than 200 medics, the health ministry said.
Israel says its aim is to secure the return home of tens of thousands of people evacuated from Israel’s north due to rocket attacks by Hezbollah, which began firing across the border in support of Hamas at the start of the Gaza war in October 2023.
Israel also mounted more strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs, a once densely populated stronghold of Hezbollah.
It issued evacuation orders on the social media platform X for several buildings in the area on Friday. Reuters footage showed one of the strikes appearing to pierce the center of a multi-story building, sending the whole structure toppling in a massive cloud of smoke.


UN reports heavy clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah in south Lebanon

Updated 22 November 2024
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UN reports heavy clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah in south Lebanon

  • “We are aware of heavy shelling in the vicinity of our bases,” UNIFIL spokesman Andrea Tenenti said
  • Asked if the peacekeepers and staff at the headquarters are safe, Tenenti said: “Yes for the moment”

BEIRUT: Israeli troops fought fierce battles with Hezbollah fighters on Friday in different areas in south Lebanon, including a coastal town that is home to the headquarters of UN peacekeepers.
A spokesman for the UN peacekeeping force known as UNIFIL told The Associated Press that they are monitoring “heavy clashes” in the coastal town of Naqoura and the village of Chamaa to the northeast.
UNIFIL’s headquarters are located in Naqoura in Lebanon’s southern edge close to the border with Israel.
“We are aware of heavy shelling in the vicinity of our bases,” UNIFIL spokesman Andrea Tenenti said. Asked if the peacekeepers and staff at the headquarters are safe, Tenenti said: “Yes for the moment.”
Several UNIFIL posts have been hit since Israel began its ground invasion of Lebanon on Oct. 1, leaving a number of peacekeepers wounded.
The fighting came a day after the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his former defense minister and a Hamas military leader, accusing them of war crimes and crimes against humanity over their 13-month war in Gaza and the October 2023 attack on Israel respectively.
The warrant marked the first time that a sitting leader of a major Western ally has been accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity by a global court of justice.
Israel’s war has caused heavy destruction across Gaza, decimated parts of the territory and driven almost the entire population of 2.3 million people from their homes, leaving most dependent on aid to survive.
Israel launched its war in Gaza after Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting another 250. Around 100 hostages are still inside Gaza, at least a third of whom are believed to be dead.
Israel has also launched airstrikes against Lebanon after the Hezbollah militant group began firing rockets, drones and missiles into Israel the day after Hamas’ attack last October. A full-blown war erupted in September after nearly a year of lower-level conflict.


Gaza ministry: hospitals to cut or stop services ‘within 48 hours’ over fuel shortages

Updated 22 November 2024
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Gaza ministry: hospitals to cut or stop services ‘within 48 hours’ over fuel shortages

  • All hospitals in Gaza would have to stop or reduce services “within 48 hours“

GAZA: The Hamas government’s health ministry warned Friday all hospitals in Gaza would have to stop or reduce services “within 48 hours” for lack of fuel, blaming Israel for blocking its entry.
“We raise an urgent warning as all hospitals in Gaza Strip will stop working or reduce their services within 48 hours due to the occupation’s (Israel’s) obstruction of fuel entry,” Marwan Al-Hams, director of Gaza’s field hospitals, said during a press conference.


Israel says to end ‘administrative detention’ for West Bank settlers

Updated 22 November 2024
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Israel says to end ‘administrative detention’ for West Bank settlers

  • Practice allows for detainees to be held for long periods without being charged or appear in court
  • The Palestinian Prisoners Club advocacy group said in August that 3,432 Palestinians were held in administrative detention

JERUSALEM: Israeli authorities will stop holding Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank under administrative detention, or incarceration without trial, the defense ministry announced Friday.
The practice allows for detainees to be held for long periods without being charged or appear in court, and is often used against Palestinians who Israel deems security threats.
Defense Minister Israel Katz said it was “inappropriate” for Israel to employ administrative detention against settlers who “face severe Palestinian terror threats and unjustified international sanctions.”
But, according to settlement watchdog Peace Now, it is one of only few effective tools that Israeli authorities to prevent settler attacks against Palestinians, which have surged in the West Bank over the past year.
Katz said in a statement issued by his office that prosecution or “other preventive measures” would be used to deal with criminal acts in the West Bank.
B’Tselem, an Israeli rights group, said authorities use administrative detention “extensively and routinely” to hold thousands of Palestinians for lengthy periods of time.
The Palestinian Prisoners Club advocacy group said in August that 3,432 Palestinians were held in administrative detention.
Israeli daily Haaretz reported on Friday that eight settlers were held under the same practice in November.
Yonatan Mizrahi, director of settlement watch for Peace Now, said that although administrative detention was mostly used in the West Bank to detain Palestinians, it was one of the few effective tools for temporarily removing the threat of settler violence through detention.
“The cancelation of administrative detention orders for settlers alone is a cynical... move that whitewashes and normalizes escalating Jewish terrorism under the cover of war,” the group said in a statement, referring to a spike in settler attacks throughout the Israel-Hamas conflict over the past 13 months.
Western governments, including Israel’s ally and military backer the United States, have recently imposed sanctions on Israeli settlers and settler organizations over ties to violence against Palestinians.
On Monday, US authorities announced sanctions against Amana, a movement that backs settlement development, and others who have “ties to violent actors in the West Bank.”
“Amana is a key part of the Israeli extremist settlement movement and maintains ties to various persons previously sanctioned by the US government and its partners for perpetrating violence in the West Bank,” the US Treasury said.
Excluding Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, the West Bank — which Israel has occupied since 1967 — is home to three million Palestinians as well as about 490,000 Israelis living in settlements that are illegal under international law.


UK would arrest Netanyahu over ICC warrant: Senior politician 

Updated 22 November 2024
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UK would arrest Netanyahu over ICC warrant: Senior politician 

  • Emily Thornberry: Britain has ‘obligation under Rome Convention’ to arrest Israeli PM if he enters country 
  • Court: ‘Reasonable grounds to believe’ Netanyahu responsible for war crimes, crimes against humanity in Gaza

LONDON: The UK will arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he enters the country, a senior British politician has said.

The International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu on Thursday for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity, alongside his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, pertaining to the Gaza war.

Emily Thornberry — Labour chair of the foreign affairs committee, and former shadow foreign secretary and shadow attorney general — told Sky News: “If Netanyahu comes to Britain, our obligation under the Rome Convention would be to arrest him under the warrant from the ICC.

“(It is) not really a question of should — we are required to, because we are members of the ICC.”

UK Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has refused to be drawn on whether Netanyahu would be arrested if he set foot on British soil, saying it “wouldn’t be appropriate for me to comment.”

She told Sky: “We’ve always respected the importance of international law, but in the majority of the cases that they pursue, they don’t become part of the British legal process.

“What I can say is that obviously, the UK government’s position remains that we believe the focus should be on getting a ceasefire in Gaza.”

Netanyahu’s arrest warrant is the first to be issued against the premier of a major Western ally by an international court for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.

His office denounced the warrant as “anti-Semitic,” adding that Israel “rejects with disgust the absurd and false actions.” Israel is not an ICC member and rejects the court’s jurisdiction.

US President Joe Biden called the warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant “outrageous,” adding: “Whatever the ICC might imply, there is no equivalence — none — between Israel and Hamas.”

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said he plans to invite Netanyahu to visit Budapest, adding that the arrest warrant will “not be observed” by his government.

The Italian and French governments, however, have indicated that Netanyahu will be arrested if he visits either country.

The ICC said on Thursday it has “reasonable grounds to believe” that Netanyahu and Gallant “bear criminal responsibility” for “the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare; and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts.”

The court also issued a warrant for Hamas commander Mohammed Diab Ibrahim Al-Masri for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Israel says Al-Masri, believed to have been the mastermind behind the Hamas attack of Oct. 7, 2023, was killed in Gaza earlier this year.

The ICC said it issued the warrant for his arrest because of insufficient evidence to prove his death.