Let truth be a window
WANN writers at do the WRITE thing
Thank you to everyone who supported our second solidarity writing session of do the WRITE thing held online on Sunday 22 June. We raised €520 to support a Palestinian family’s medical costs for their father.
A massive thank you and brava to the special guests from We Are Not Numbers who zoomed from Gaza, Egypt, and Ireland:
Walaa Sabah
Fatima Shaat
Nour Abo Aisha
Aseel Al-Balaawi
Taqwa Ahmed Al-Wawi
Rawan Sabah
Hala Al-Khatib
Please read on for their author bios and links to their work.
These lines from their poems and stories gave inspiration to the participant writers in our writing session:
It is the streets that know my footsteps (Fatima)
As a mother would touch her newborn (Nour)
I write because my voice is all I have left (Aseel)
The battle within (Taqwa)
We began our journey on foot (Rawan)
Let truth be a window (Hala)
Walaa is the director of operations at We Are Not Numbers. In 2022, Walaa won the UK’s prestigious Chevening scholarship and earned a first-class MSC degree in business with operations management from Warwick Business School. She works as a freelance journalist. You can read her articles at MEE, EI, Mondoweiss, and the New Arab. Walaa was a special guest at the Open Mic for Gaza sessions last year.
Fatima is a law student and writer from Gaza, who seeks to preserve the love, dignity, and humanity that war tries to erase. She read her poem which was published with Baladi magazine: Gaza Is the Beginning and the End – Baladi and other work is available to read: Fatima's stories on We Are Not Numbers.
Nour is a journalist, writer, and freelancer living in the Gaza Strip. She is a translator and literature student. She read a new poem, and her other work is available to read: Surviving war in North Gaza - We Are Not Numbers
Was a student at the Al-Azhar College of Pharmacy in Gaza City before she was displaced and the university campus was destroyed. She was displaced in Rafah with her family, which consistently encouraged her to write about the Palestinian plight. Aseel has received academic honors from the Amideast Centre and the Genius Mind Program. A naturally curious person, she finds inspiration in the discovery of new places and things. She continues her studies at a university in Egypt. Aseel read a story that came from her heart and other work is available at: The six exoduses of Aseel Al-Balaawi - We Are Not Numbers
Taqwa is a 19-year-old writer and poet from Gaza, currently pursuing a degree in English Literature at the Islamic University of Gaza. As an emerging literary voice, she is dedicated to amplifying Gaza’s stories through her writing. In addition to contributing to We Are Not Numbers, her work has appeared in prominent outlets including The Electronic Intifada, Mondoweiss, The Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, The Palestine Chronicle, The Markaz Review, and Middle East Monitor. Her poetry has also been published by the Gaza Poets Society. Taqua read a new poem, The Battle Within, and other work is available: Taqwa Ahmed Al-Wawi - We Are Not Numbers
Rawan is a pharmacy student at Al-Azhar University. She completed her first year but was unable to continue her studies due to the war in Gaza, which led to the destruction of her university and worsened living conditions. Despite these hardships, Rawan dedicated herself to helping those around her. She transformed her parents’ tent into a medical shelter, providing aid to the injured during the war. She also organized food campaigns to support families and orphans and volunteered in a solar panel initiative to help families living in tents access electricity. She is currently studying in Trinity College Dublin. Rawan read from her story Treating Wounds, Removing Bullets: This Student Saves Lives in Gaza which was published in the Rolling Stone Magazine. More of Rawan’s work is available: Rebuilding hope - We Are Not Numbers
Hala is an English literature student from Gaza. She says: “My words are my voice, for myself and for the world, with no limits. Through my writing, I aim to share a piece of the life of a Gaza girl, living through hardship but with boundless ambition. I believe that words can be a bridge between me and the world, and through stories, I reveal the truth of what I live, beyond any embellishment or minimization.” Hala read her poem Last light promise and you can read Hala’s story: Hala on We Are Not Numbers
Donations for do the WRITE thing can be made at this gofundme link.
The We Are Not Numbers anthology is available in Ireland from Books Upstairs Dublin:
We Are Not Numbers: The Voices of Gaza’s Youth | Buy online at Books Upstairs
And in the UK:
Buy our book - We Are Not Numbers
Please keep reading about, talking about, and writing about Palestine.
Thank you, in solidarity.