Textos de David Segarra a excepció dels que estan signats amb l autoria corresponent.

Transcription

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2 EDICIÓ NO VENAL Traducció del texto del llibre: Viure, morir i nàixer a Gaza (Sembra Llibre, novembre de ISBN: ) De le fotografie: David Segarra Soler, 2014 Texto de David Segarra a excepció del que etan ignat amb l autoria correponent. D aqueta edició: Sembra Llibre, Coop. V., 2014 Apartat de correu Carcaixent (Ribera Alta) embra@embrallibre.com Dieny de la col lecció i maquetació: Setanta Dieny i maquetació d aquet llibret: Mineral Gràfic Traducció al catellà: Roger Sarrià Traducció a l anglè: Adela Ortiz Traducció a l àrab: Tamer Hamdan i Rabah Boughenna Cal ligrafie: Wiam Abed 2

3 INTRO PROLOGUE BIRTH OF A BOOK (PAGE 9) Thi i a book that wa not meant to exit. A book that tarted unwittingly. A photograpy book with no camera and with no photographer. But, how i it poible not to be born when the eed ha already been planted? HAYAT. Life. SABR. Patience. Pereverance. SHUKR. Gratitude. GAZA IN A DAY (PAGE 7) Nightime in the Mediterranean. It i raining. Not everyone i leeping. Someone i etting off firework next to the port. Some area of the city are dark due to the power outage. A mother i loing a child and i giving birth to another almot at the ame time. Unmanned plane are watching from the ky. People killed and injured under the bomb. The F-16 fighter aircraft and the Apache helicopter are looking for human objective. People killed and injured under the bomb. The tank are hooting projectile againt a funeral. The oldier are running away frightened. An Iraeli armoured get the impact. Reitance i pointing from a ruined houe. The day tart in the Mediterranean. All thi ha happened today in Gaza, Paletine. And life goe on. The conflict in Paletine ha accompanied all of u who come from the Mediterranean throughout our live. We have grown up with the image of horror. Year after year. Unreolved. The firt thing I remember i I wa eleven and I aw on televiion how a group of oldier wa uing rock to break arm, elbow and mucle to children of my age. There wa no need to be an expert. Any eleven-year-old child perfectly undertand the evil behind an adult breaking a child body. I would learn later that thoe image reponded to a political deciion which had been coldly tudied. Counter-inurgency technique, containment and control of the enemy population. Later I would alo learn that the children I aw were not the only one to uffer it. That it did not only happen in Paletine. That conqueror do thi kind of thing to their conquered. That we alo experienced that in 1707 and Thi book journey tarted, unintentionally, after Operation Cat Lead, when Irael attacked Gaza in In 2009 I tarted to learn what reilience i: the capacity to urvive, to not urrender, to face adverity, to fight. The art of getting tronger and poitively tranformed from conflict and difficultie. In Paletine, each impact i explained and undertood from abolutely living faith and tradition. And each killed, injured, orphaned and widowed i honoured and cared for by the comunity. Between trauma and adne, the joy of living and confidence are found. Reilience, then, could be the modern approach to decribe the eence of the miracle of the peritance of human life. There i a tory that, in my opinion, perfectly embodie the meaning of reilience. During 2009 bombing, the mall Gaza zoo witneed how their animal died: lion, ENGLISH 3

4 PROLOGUE monkey and bird. Some affected by the bomb, ome other by hunger. When the attack ended, the zoo owner found death and detruction under the ruin. Father and on at down to think. The blockade did not allow them to bring new animal. And in the Strip there are only dog, cat, pigeon, hen, hore and donkey. Ye, donkey. They took ome of thee animal. In Gaza they are called Abu Sabr -that i, the mot patient, the father of patience. They ued hair dye to paint them white with black tripe, and they cut the mane into a bruh hape. Thi i how the zebra of Gaza were born. And when the zoo opened it door again, Gaza children were atonihed. Innocent a they are, they travelled outide Gaza. To the African avannah, to the Arabian deert. To the real and the imaginary world. Free. Happy. In peace. Like in Benigni Life i beautiful, in Paletine adult protect their children. Truth alway urpae fiction. At that point I thought that we could learn a lot from thee zebra, from thi tory and what it repreent. And, then, I tarted the project to film a documentary called The zebra of Gaza, an audioviual work to how torie of reitence and reilience that take place in Paletine. In 2010 I join the Freedom Flotilla. Nine hip carry even-hundred activit and journalit on board from fifty nation, a well a 10,000 tone of humanitarian aid. I board with the upport of Venezuelan televiion channel. Jew, Mulim, Chritian, Kurd and Turk, people from all around the world, converge. United. Laura Arnau, activit and journalit that wa part of the Flotilla decribe it a a new Noah ark. The objective are to break the ea blockade to Gaza and to bring aid: healthcare, educational and building material for the recontruction. We know we are at rik. But we cannot immagine to what extreme. At dawn, the 31t of May, all the trength of the Iraeli navy i on u. The urvivor are kidnapped in international water and taken to a high ecurity prion in the middle of the Neguev deert. Ironically, in front of Gaza and urrounded by Bedouin Paletinian village. The tory of the zebra will have to wait. It i the time to explain the tory of the Flotilla. Thu, a year later, we releae the documentary Fire over the Marmara. Four year later, in 2014, I join a group of activit and journalit that work on the protection of Paletinian farmer from the daily attack of oldier. I pend three month in Gaza. A few day under the bombing. My objective i to obtain an in-depth knowledge of the Strip and to look for torie for the documentary The Zebra of Gaza. I have no camera and no computer. I do not want any ditraction. I want to focu on life and on reality. Book and notebook are my companion. But Manu Pineda, one of the initiator of Unidakum brigade ha a Nikon. And I ak for it. Only one of the lene work: it i a telephoto len that allow me, and force me, to get cloe to reality from the ditance. I am not a photographer, but without even realiing, I gather thouand of photograph of Gaza daily life. I meet people and I live beautiful experience. And, at the end, I meet the father and the on who painted the donkey a zebra. A few day later, the bombing tart. The tory of the zebra i helved again. When I get back to Valencia, thinking about the people I have left in Gaza, I ak myelf what I can do. The idea arie talking with Xavi Sarrià: let make a book. Ye. Let do it. Let hare the torie. They deerve to be told. Let make a photograpy book without a photographer. Let make a book like they made a zebra without zebra. What we have een, and what we are trying to learn, i the art, the capacity to create beauty and order from horror and chao. In a time of fall like thi we need to liten and to think. Even to remember. Becaue we, in our land, have alo been like that. Becaue we have alo been able to tand up. Thi i why thi book i not only about Gaza; thi book i about the poibility to be ourelve. And to remind ourelve that the mot ferociou battle i not againt the external enemy, but againt the evil that live in u, that corrupt and colonize u from the inide. Without an internal liberation that improve and elevate u, every external and material liberation i condemned to fail. Thi i what Paletine ha taught me and what I want to hare with you. David Segarra Soler Bétera,

5 HAYAT THREE ATTEMPTS TO ENTER GAZA (PAGE 18) Winter A year after Operation Cat Lead I am able to enter the Gaza Strip. I come from Caraca, Venezuela, with two colleague: Vicent, the Valencian; and Vivianna, the Venezuelan. They are not able to enter. And, even though they try to through the muggler route of the Sinai, they do not manage to. New Year Eve in Gaza. I meet people from all around the world. Many are Jewih. 72 hour later, Mubarak Egiptian regime force u to leave. We three meet again in Cairo. From there we travel toward Jerualem, Bethlehem, Hebron, and Aida refugee camp. We learn there a new arabic word: Hayat. It i the name of an orphan girl and it mean life. Spring I try it again with the Mavi Marmara and the Freedom Flotilla. We leave from Itambul, Turkey, with hundred of people from all over the planet. Early morning, in the middle of the ea, we are attacked by Iraeli elite force. Ten people die. Among them, the journalit Cevdet Kiliçlar. We do not make it to Gaza. We get tuck at the Iraeli port of Ahdod. From the Mediterranean to the Negev. We are in incommunicado detention and iolated at Ber Sheeba prion for three day. We are deported and forbidden the entrance to the State of Irael for ten year. It i, therefore, forbidden to go back to Jerualem, Bethlehem, Aida and all the Wet Bank. Four year later I go back to Cairo. Two week of waiting and I enter again Gaza. It feel a if thi wa the firt time. I live three month among orchard, fig, orange and olive tree. Three pring month. Three long month. A hundred day. Like the previou trip, I keep doing reearch with a documentary film about the life and reitance of Paletinian in mind. I pend a week under the bomb before I come back to Valencia. To be with my family. To write thi book. And to prepare the return. THE CLOSED SEA (PAGE 24) During the month I tay in Gaza I keep hearing torie about fihermen. They are attacked every week from the warhip that encloe the ea. Gaza i an oai urrounded by the Negev and the Sinai deert. Jut in front of it, the Mediterranean. The Paletinian port of the Strip are tiny. It ha been more than half a century ince the lat foreigner hip docked. And Paletinian boat do not leave them either. The Iraeli military authoritie impoe a fihing limit. Depending on the negotiation, it can extend to ten kilometer or reduce up to three. Depending on the trategy of the colonizer, more or le fih capture i allowed. The fihermen tell me, before the lat military ecalation, that only about a hundred boat, out of four thouand, are leaving due to the daily attack. They alo tell torie of dozen of tolen boat and hundred of fihermen captured and imprioned. When they how me the boat cementery I realize they do not need an autopy. The impact of the projectile i obviou. Alo the car. Many did not die at the firt attack and they could recue them to live more live. But nothing impeed Mohamed the boxer and the beach guard to invite u to eat fih. THE INJURED LAND (PAGE 32) The firt place in Gaza that I get to know i Khuza a and it cultivated land, which extend at the outh-wet of the Strip. Behind, the orchard and the citru fruit tree. Here, the dry land and grain. Jut facing, the border with the State of Irael. Unadikum brigade come here every day during harveting time. From Malaga, La Guaira, Madrid, Pari, Lleida, Alcoi, Muro and Valencia. They come to act a human hield. When they are not there, army niper hoot at the farmer. They are injured and, ometime, killed. Even when the international volunteer are clearly identified, the oldier open fire. But the trategy of the brigade i a ucce. They only fire in the air and to the floor. Sometime, a few metre from the feet. But the crop i harveted. With ickle and by hand. The land give birth, again. Operation Protective Edge will detroy everything in The cicle of death and life i renovated. Among the footprint of the tank, women and men go back to till the land and they get plant to prout. And the ant keep running along the underground tunnel. 5

6 HAYAT It i etimated that, ince 1948, the State of Irael ha uprooted a million fig, lemmon, orange and olive tree in Paletine. I cannot avoid remembering the Punta orchard in Valencia, which wa alo devatated by the force. And a ong come to my mind: Dad, the field i not the field anymore. Dad, tomorrow, the ky will cry blood. The wind ing it in tear. Dad, they have arrived. Fleh monter with iron worm. Dad, no, don t be afraid, and ay no, becaue I am waiting for you. Dad, they are killing the land. Dad, top crying becaue they have declared the war on u. THE CONQUEST (PAGE 36) Not much i known about the low and ubtle colonization proce of the Paletinian land. Throughout the 19th and 20th centurie, and in order to be able to ell and buy the land, the Ottoman and Britih Empire introduced and impoed the cenu, the private property and the tate tructure. Thee did not exit in traditional ociety. European Zionit benefited from thi new legal framework to tart buying land. It i etimated that about 80 and 90% of the land they bought belonged to Paletinian rich landowner. The peaant, who were mot of the population, had to face the power of five great enemie: two empire, Zionim, the Arab regime and the local elite. One mut remember that in the 19th century, the Paletinian population wa about 5% Jewih, 10% Chritian and 85% Mulim. From the 19th century, the Jewih property in Paletinian land grew from 1 to 3% and it got to 7% in In the 20th century, the Britih State owned almot half of the territory, and the Paletinian retained the other half. But after 1948 war, the new State of Irael conquered by the arm the 78% of Paletine and expelled more than 700,000 native. In 1962, and according to the law created with thi aim, the Zionit tate already controlled around 90 or 95% of the land inide it firt border. The Paletinian kept a 5% of thee land. In 1967, Irael invaded Gaza and the Wet Bank and conquered the 100% of Paletine. Half a million of new ettler etablihed in the new occupied land. In 2005, the economic cot and the preure of the reitance led to the withdrawal of Iraeli ettler from Gaza. The following year, the longet and more maive iege in hitory againt the tiny Strip tarted. THE COMMUNITY (PAGE 38) A in the ret of the world, up to the beginning of the 20th century, mot of the Paletinian population lived off the land. And with the land. In a way that did not differ much from how they had done for centurie. Or maybe for thouand of year. What we have been hidden about Paletine, and about our own homeland, i that not all the land were owned by feudal lord and big landowner. The communal, the common, the community land, were the norm. Peaant, collectivity and people have hitorically been ynonym. Alo citizen, owner and bourgeoi. Thi i why the rural majoritie fiercely oppoed to the expanion of the central government of citie. The State, the Monarchy or the Republic ment taxe, military ervice, war and control. By force of arm and law, modernization wa impoed to people. In Paletine, the joint property ytem i called Muha or Meha a. It ancetral norm aim at keeping the integrity of the land, the unity of the community and the equality in the ditribution of the land. It prevent and dicourage the elling and buying of land and intenive and individualitic exploitation. Thi ytem aim at providing tability and utainability. Like Valencian Horta. Like the Valencian Water Tribunal. From the firt day, the Ottoman, Britih and Iraeli conqueror declared the war againt joint property. And they forbid it with the enthuiatic collaboration of mall local elite, both rural and urban. Thi clah againt the powerful will be the root of the Paletinian reitance. Of the people of the land. Today, what i left from that pirit of the land i a ilenced mitery. But in the collective and ancetral memory of Paletine, and in our people memory, the land ha a communal origin. And acred. The land belong to all of u. It i the mother and the womb. 6

7 HAYAT ONE GOD FOR ALL (PAGE 52) Paletine i the Holy Land for all Abrahamic faith. Here, Samaritan, Jew, Chritian, Mulim and Druze have lived for thouand of year. All thee religion have their origin in Abraham and follow a lineage that continue with Moe, Jeu and Muhammad. Prophete that come, one after the other, to renovate a imple meage: there i no other God than God. No pharaon, no caear, no king, not even the prophet, can rival the only true reality. With the eence of Everyting. The Creator of Creation. However, the human being, fallen from Paradie, quickly forget. And we have killed and opreed each other falely on behalf of God, of emperor, of caliph, of vengeance, of conquet, of progree and of revolution. But thi i not what I have een in Paletine. It i in Gaza where I have broaden my knowledge on traditional Chritianity. Ibrahim opened the church of Saint Porphyriu for me and I aited there to a ma that lated for five hour among icon, incene and Gregorian chant. The atmophere reminded me of the eence. The origin could be felt cloer. Maybe like in old Romaneque churche. With Ibrahim I viited the neighbouring Al-Omari Moque, where Bael, the Bedouin friend, wa praying. He proudly told me how a Samaritan, ancetral faith linked to Judaim, wa one of the Paletinian prominent political prioner. Thi book include a poem by Al-Qaim, a national Paletinian poet of Druze religion. In 2009, in Gaza, I met for the very firt time religiou Jewih people. They were there to upport Paletine. Ordinary Paletinian reverenced thee wie men. People of the Book. The eed of evil i not in the other, in the difference. It i in each one of u. Retraining darkne and leaning toward light i eential. It i each individual and each generation reponibility. From Eve, Adam, Noah, Abel and Cain, we keep looing thi comic combat. But to keep looing doe not mean having lot. IDENTITY AND RESISTANCE (PAGE 60) When conqueror conquer, the firt they try to do i to erae memory. Identity i the piritual root of the people. It i their way of being and being in the world. In the State of Irael there are till a a million and a half Paletinian who are educated according to Zionit educational planning. A tudy conducted by the Arabic Cultural Aociation found more than 16,225 mitake in the Arab textbook impoed by the authoritie. It i no coincidence. At the ame time, politician dicued about reducing the teaching of the Arabic language. The upremacy of Hebrew i abolute. Paletinian tudent are denied their hitory and their identity while they are ditanced from their Gaza and Wet Bank brother and iter. Paletine doe not exit. Paletinian do not exit. They have never exited and never will. They call them arab-iraeli. Speaking Arabic mean upicion, detention, poverty. Speaking Hebrew i peaking the language of the mater, of the powerful, of the victor. Hundred of village were eraed from the map and their Arab name were replaced by Hebrew. The director of the tate train company even forbid the top announcement to be pronounced in Arabic. He ay that Hebrew and Englih are enough. To include Arabic would make the journey too noiy. For 67 year now, Jewih tudent arrived from all over the world are taught to hate Arab. A tudy by The Hebrew Univerity of Jerualem analized hundred of textbook and did not find a ingle image in which Arab were depicted a normal people. Of coure, explaining the hitory of the Nakba, the Paletinian catatrophe, i perecuted. The old will die and the young will not remember, the conqueror ay again and again. And we hould not be urpried. Up until I wa 18 I knew nothing about my own hitory, that of the Crown of Aragon, of the Valencian Reign (the Ilamic and the Chritian), of Baptita Baet, of maulet and botifler, of the burning of Xàtiva in 1707, of the aault on Barcelona in 1714, of the prohibition of our law and cutom. Or about the three centurie of perecution of our valencian-catalan language. Actually, I tarted to peak it and to write it when I wa an adult. And if I have been able to learn it, it i thank to thoe who, for three centurie, protected and tranmitted the treaure of our memory in farmhoue, in village, in familie and on book. 7

8 HAYAT OMAR AL-MUKHTAR STREET S MECHANIC (PAGE 64) The bet way to get around Gaza i by motorbike. Mot people do not agree. They tell me it i crazy. But the ue of the motorbike inexorably increae. It low fuel conumption and it agility make it perfect to go around the 45 kilometer of a trip of land which i almot flat. Therefore, I buy a Dayun 40 that ha arrived in Paletine from China through the tunnel. The quality, of coure, leave a bit to be deired. A few day later, the clutch cable break. A friend and I are lot in the middle of the city. Some young men how u the way to a mechanic hop at Omar al-mukhtar treet. Abu Haan welcome u there. The hop i tiny, dark and full of boxe and tool. Abu interrupt what he i doing and take care of our motorbike at the treet. He peak with my friend, who i a French-Tuniian citizen. Where i the world? Where are the Mulim? Abu ak. Why have they forgotten Paletine? In a few minute, the cable i repaired. He charge u ten hekel. Two euro. I come back twice to have the oil changed and a flat tyre repaired. He doe not charge me now. Nothing. I init, embarraed. But, there i no way. I keep initing until he take a worn leather wallet out of hi pocket. With it in hi hand he ay to me: Don t worry; if you have any money problem, you can come here and I will help you. No problem. He, who i imprioned in Gaza and with hardly any opportunity, i offering me hi help. I leave looking to the ground. And to the ky. I ay good bye from the motorbike. What can I ay? What can I add? I leave thinking: We ll ee each other again. THE CAT THAT HAD TO DIE (PAGE 72) The telephone ring in the appartment where I live cloe to the port. It eem that there ha been an attack by an unmanned plane. We walk to Shifa hopital to find out if there i anyone killed or injured. When we get there, the effort and the dicuion to get information from the doctor tart. Finally, it turn out to be a fale alarm. Some colleague are moking and other are trying to make an old machine erve them a coffee. We hear a meow. We find a little orange cat on the floor. I knee to care it. I dicover, with horror, that it ha a broken leg. It doe not walk, it crawl. We are all affected. A car might have run over it. We ak the doctor if it can be cured. They tell u that they can hardly ait people. We even ak if they can euthanize it. It will not urvive and will tarve. We are told that the little they have i for people. Jut then, a young man approache u, curiou. He i miling. And he ha no leg. He explain u that a few year earlier an Apache helicopter attacked hi houe and killed hi brother. But he i here. Talking to u. And miling. Someone take the cat, put it into a box and caree it. They walk back lowly and ilently. They do not go back home, but toward the port. They continue the line of the beach and they arrive, acro the rock, to the furthet dock. The ea and the ky are black. Very black. There are no tar. The cat i careed with all the poible love. And, in an infinite intant, the cat, innocent, join the ea forever. The following day, many cat, the ame orange colour, how up in the treet. The children from the hop give them water to drink. 8

9 SABR BABEL (PAGE 84) Many many year ago, in the vibrant city of Babylon, a huge tower wa built. It wa the pride of power and of the cience of Man againt Nature and God. The Jew, then a nomad people without land, conidered thi tower to be a reflection of the arrogance of the nacent civiliation. And they called it Babel. In the Gaza Strip, modern Irael i howing Paletinian it face at the border that imprion them. In the North, in front of Beit Lahya, Rutenberg thermal power tation tand impoing. Here, coal i tranformed into electricity. Behind, the city of Aqalan. Thi really old Canaanite village wa inhabited in 1948 by 11,000 Paletinian, Mulim and Chritian. When the Iraeli troop arrived, it citizen were confined in a ghetto until they were deported to Gaza. For decade, Jewih immigrant from all over the world have ettled in the new city, rebaptized Ahkelon. Today, it i one of the mot polluted Iraeli citie in one of the world mot polluting countrie. In the Eat, in front of the extene cereal field, the barrier. Separated by ome meter, there are remote-control urveillance tower. The camera and the movement enor allow the operator to point the machine gun toward human objective. Every day, armored car, military vehicle and truck routinely go into the Paletinian field to mow the gra. That i, to prevent the tree and plant from growing. Security iue, they ay. Paletinian could hide among them, they jutify themelve. A few meter away from the fence, the Iraeli agroindutry ue plane to pray with peticide the extenive ingle-crop field. By land, ea and air, all kind of robotic vehicle keep an eye on the native population. But the tory tell u that the tower of Babel fall down. DIVIDE ET IMPERA (PAGE 88) Divide to reign. The conqueror know that the mot effective way to dominate and to dilute the conquered i to ow diviion and dient between them. Thi maxim i attributed to the Macedonian, but it wa the Roman who put it into practice in all the Mediterranean. French, Briton and Spaniard have matered diviion. Many of the current fraticide war in Africa and Aia have their origin in the unbalance generated by the Britih and French empire. The Catilian Reign i reponible for the conquet, fragmentation and extermination of hundred of indigenou nation in Latin America. Alo for the deintegration of Al-Andalu and of the Crown of Aragon. Paletine i currently divided into many fragment. There i the State of Irael, where a million and a half Paletinian live. There i Jerualem, where three hundred thouand of them reit. There i the Wet Bank, with another two million and a half. There i Gaza, whith almot two million. And there i alo the diapora, which account for about eight million people. They are mainly in Jordan, Lebanon, Siria and Chile. The Paletinian are, according to the etimation, between eleven and fourteen million people. The State of Irael ha created a legal network to control, fragment and divide the conquered. The million of Paletinian living abroad cannot viit Irael, let alone live there. Neither the Wet Bank, Jerualem or Gaza. The Paletinian from Gaza cannot viit the Wet Bank or Jerualem. The Paletinian from the Wet Bank cannot go to Gaza. Therefore, they cannot marry, tudy or work together. If, for intance, a Paletinian from Jerualem fall in love with a Paletinian from Bethlehem and get married, one would loe the right to live and to go back to hi or her own city. Familie, land, village, torie and love eparated by wall and oldier. The Iraeli Government impoe five hierarchical identitie in it apartheid ytem. From top to bottom: Iraeli Jew, Paletinian from Irael, Paletinian from Jerualem, Paletinian from the Wet Bank and Paletinian from Gaza. Each group, in decending order, ha more retriction and le right. Future i uncertain; but whan we can be certain about i the fact that, depite the huge obtacle, Paletinian are till Paletinian. 9

10 SABR THE MOTHER (PAGE 94) Every Monday, relative of the political and war prioner gather in front of the International Red Cro building. Mother, wive, father, brother, iter, friend and activit. They are on hunger trike in olidarity with their people. I am attracted by the face of a woman. She look at me. I take a photo of her. She mile and I greet her with repect. A few month later I will get to know her tory. Rihab Kanaan family fled from Paletine. She wa born in Lebanon, in Al-Zaatar (Thyme) refugee camp. She married when he wa very young and he moved to Sabra and Shatila refugee camp. During the Lebanee civil war, thee two camp uffered the wort maacre in the hitory of Paletine. Between 2,000 and 6,000 civilian were exterminated by the Lebanee phalanx with the upport of the Iraeli troop, led by Ariel Sharon. Hundred of children were killed and many women were raped and murdered. The mutilation and the horror that the journalit and diplomatic found there are too terrible to have them written. Fifty member of her family died. Including her huband. Her daughter diappeared. Rihab married again and emigrated to Tuniia. There, he became an important poet. In 1995 he went back to Paletine, to the Gaza Strip. Five year later, a urvivor from Lebanon told her that her daughter wa till alive. A few month later, he received a phone call: Mum, it me. Maymana. She had not died. She had urvived and the neighbour had reared her. That ame year 2000, the Lebanee reitance expelled the Zionit and the Phalangit armie. Mother and daughter decided to meet at the border. Maymana waited for her mother day after day while he aw how other familie got toghether after half a century of eparation. But her mother did not apper. Rihab did not arrive. The authoritie did not give her the authoriation. She had to wait for another two year, when a Gaza journalit dicovered Rihab tory and managed to organize, with a televiion channel, the meeting in the United Arab Emirate. Finally, after 24 year appart, mother and daughter were together again. Maymana aid: Now I believe in miracle and hope. I have finally found the love of a mother. But the occupation continue, and mother and daughter are till living appart, in Gaza and Beirut. They have only been able to meet again a econd time. IMPRISON PERSEVERANCE (PAGE 96) A day pa, I make ome friend in Gaza. Mot of them, journalit and artit. I alo meet their friend from Jabalia, Bureij and Rafah. Many are around the age of fourty. While calmly chatting they point out to one of them: He ha been in prion for twenty year. He mut be two or three year older than me. That one over there, for eventeen year, the other, five year. And I, four, my friend ay to me. I look at them again. One after the other. Nobody could imagine what they have lived through. But omething i obviou: they have not finihed them off. They have not been able to break them down. Since the total occupation of Paletine, in 1976, 800,000 Paletinian are etimated to have been arreted or imprioned. Nowaday, there are more than five thouand Paletinian in the jail of the State of Irael. There are prioner of war, the guerrilla; there are political prioner, activit, journalit and intellectual locked up becaue of their opinion; there are prioner without charge, the o called adminitrative prioner, about two hundred people arreted for being potentially dangerou; and there are alo other two hundred minor. Every year, almot a thouand minor are proecuted by the military judicial ytem. Even hundred of human right defender and dozen of parliament member have been arreted and imprioned. Irael i one of the few countrie to have legalized torture. They do define it a moderate phyical preure. About a hundred Paletinian have died in torture eion. Thouand have reulted pychologically traumatized. Thi i the real objective. The Public Committee againt Torture in Irael publihed a report in 2014 in which tated that 74% of arreted Paletinian children had uffered violence from the Iraeli guard. Many had been put into cage. Some uffered exual abue. Becaue torture and violence are not ued to get information. The real goal i the exercie of power: the Paletinian have to learn that there i a mater and a lave. And the mater i the only one 10

11 SABR who can punih the lave. All Paletinian know that. There i not even a family without a martyr or omeone in prion. When we viit ome of the ex-prioner friend, there i alway a poter with their name and their image in a viible place of the front of the houe. They are the pride of the family, the neighbourhood and the community. Prioner are the example. The bravet. The mot pacient. KILLING BEAUTY (PAGE 104) I wa few day under the bomb. Cloe to the port and to government building that were bombed every night. I aw how, at firt, people did not run or peed up during the bombing. Why? Becaue there i nowhere to run to. There i no helter in Gaza. I heard that ome familie would leep together in the ame room in order to die together if fatality fell on them. At Shifa hopital I aw father carrying their detroyed children. I aw beautiful little girl leeping with hrapnel on their head. And I aw young people without leg, unconciou, yet unaware. In 2014, the Irael war machinery bombed by air, land and ea, for fifty day, two hundred chool, eventy nurerie and four univeritie. Seven UNRWA (the UN branch for Paletine refugee) chool-helter uffered attack that injured and killed hundred of civilian. More than five hundred children were killed. It i etimated that three thouand have been mutilated or diabled. What might have the gunner been thinking when he threw a projectile to the four children playing football on Gaza City beach? Why did he decided to modify the angle to fire a econd projectile that killed them all? According to everal report from international and human right organization, civilian death accounted for 75% of the total. Seven moque were reduced to rubble. Two hundred more uffered evere damage. For many Paletinian, thee are holy place; place for peace, prayer and helter for the pirit. Al-Omari Moque, in Jabalia, wa one of the detroyed. It wa built 1365 year ago. The very old tomb of the church were alo damaged. The animal of the zoo were killed again. The lat image I have i the car trip along the central Saladin Road, among crater, demolihed building and pillar of fire. I paed through all the Strip, from the city of Gaza, in the north, to the Rafah croing, in the outh. Through the window I aw how the farmer kept tranporting vegetable on their low cart, how the eller waited for their client itting at the door of the hop and how the cleaner wept the treet and picked up the rubbih. The war had tarted but people refued to top living. Maybe thi i beauty. KILLING THE TRUTH (PAGE 106) When the war tarted I wa at Alaa office. Alaa i a documentary film maker and friend. I wa uing hi laptop to edit the photo I had taken with Manu camera. Through the window, I aw how the firt bomb fell, riing cloud of black moke. I took photo of them. It wa the lat day I ued the motorbike. In that ame tudio I held the videocamera that accompanied it operator, Khaled Hamad, until hi death. The firt victim of the pre, however, wa Hamid Shihab, a driver for a televiion unit who wa hit by a miile at the entrance of one of the pre building. The ame building where Mua ab and Iabel were working retlely. A Paletinian and an Aragonee who are working their finger to the bone to tell what i happening in Gaza. In fifty day, Irael killed eventeen pre worker. According to a report by the Gaza Center for Media Freedom, twelve media office and eleven journalit houe were bombed. The Iraeli army pokewoman wrote on a letter to the New York Time that the victim were terrorit with camera and notebook and, a uch, legitimate objective. I imagine they thought the ame the dawn of 31 of May 2010 when they aaulted the Mavi Marmara in international water. The Iraeli oldier killed Cevdet Kiliçlar when he wa holding hi camera. They hot him between the eye, literally, from a few meter away. In Itanbul, hi daughter told u that her father wa teaching her how to be a journalit. 11

12 SABR SAILS AND WINDS (PAGE 122) Thouand of year ago, Homer wrote Ulye Odyey. An epic poem that take u, ailing, around the Mediterranean. To go back home, to Penelope and Telemachu. To find Ithaca. Between 1492 and 1502, the Spanih Catholic Monarch decreed the converion or expulion or Mulim and Iberian Jew. A century later, the deportation of thoe who had reited wa ordered. In 1609, the port of Vinarò, Moncofa, València, Dénia and Alacant witneed how thouand of deperate familie et ail. To get to Tuniia, Algeria and Turkey. Mulim and Jew, Moorih and Sephardic Jew would be embraced in Ilamic land. In 1939, thouand of Spanih republican refugee pile into the port of Alacant following the offenive of facit troop. The captain of the Britih hip Stanbrook took pity on them and, lipping pat the blocade, led them to alvation from a certain death. To Algeria, again. In 1947, thouand of Jewih urvivor from the Holocaut ail in the Exodu after the European government treat them like outcat. From port to port, they finally arrive in Paletine. When they do arrive, however, Britih troop aault the hip. A pitched battle take place and three people die. In 2010 an international flotilla compoed of activit from fifty nation meet in Itanbul. They ail toward Gaza to break the blockade with 10,000 ton of aid. Iraeli elite troop aault the ix hip. In 2014, Gaza Ark i built. A hip that aim to break the iege from the inide, taking Paletinian product to the exterior world. A guided miile hit it one of the firt day of the war. It burn to ahe. A alway, new hip and new odyey will continue ailing from the Mediterranean port. ONE WHO SAVES ONE LIFE SAVES THE ENTIRE WORLD (PAGE 132) It i written on Jewih and Mulim acred text. On the Torah and on the Quran. One who kill an innocent life hould be conidered a though he had killed the whole humanity. And one who ave a life hould be conidered a though he had aved an entire world. During the military operation againt Gaza in 2014, ome urvey were conducted in Irael. Terrifying number were given. Between 80 and 90% of the population howed their upport to the military operation in Gaza. Depite the number, we hould ak ourelve: Who i thi minority who oppoe war? And, what do Jew around the world ay? The Zionit State claim to repreent them. I that true? I met Hedy Eptein in Cairo. She i a venerable old lady. German and Jewih. Her family died in the Holocaut. She remember eeing through her window the firt parade of Nazi troop. The uniform. The boot. When he viited Irael he aw again the boot and the uniform and he wore not to be part of that world. Since then, he conume the time he ha got left helping today perecuted: the Paletinian. In Stockholm I met Dror Feiler. Of German and Jewih origin, too. Hi family ecaped from Nazim. And he arrived in Paletine. He told me how they hide at home Paletinian ecaping from the troop of the new State of Irael. Today he i one of the organizer of the Freedom Flotilla. I have known Ronnie Karil thank to the media. South African Jew, he joined Nelon Mandela guerrilla. A leader of the pie of the revolution he confronted the apartheid ytem. He dicovered there that hi enemy had a loyal ally: the Moad and the State of Irael. Thi i why Demond Tutu, Mandela and himelf have been key figure in the olidarity with Paletine. Very young, Omer Goldman i the daughter of a former Moad chief. She ha grown up in the heart of the tate. When he viited the occupied territorie he witneed everything he had been hidden. Today, he i one of the voice of Shminitim, the rebelliou tudent who prefer prion to joining the army. The decline of the Zionit dream i clearly explained by rabbi Ron Aigen from Montreal: It ued to be that Irael wa alway the uniting factor in the Jewih world, But it become contentiou and adly, I think it i driving people away from the organized Jewih community. 12

13 SABR SAINT GEORGE, A PALESTINIAN MARTYR (PAGE 136) Saint George wa the on of a Roman oldier and a Paletinian from Lydda. Following in the foottep of hi father, he joined the army. It wa the time of Chritian rebellion againt the Empire. George wa ordered to perecute the rebel. And he refued to. Secretly, he wa alo part of the inurgent who denied the divine character of emperor and the Roman State. Thi i the reaon why he wa entenced to death and executed. When Chritian cruader arrived in Paletine in 1098, they were urpried about the fact that Mulim from Lydda had maintained the cult to Saint George, who they called Al-Khadr. At that time, both Chritian and Mulim honored him. When they were back from the cruade, the myth of Saint George arrived in Europe and hi veneration rapidly expanded to Naple, Aragon, Catalonia, Alcoi or Paiporta. It ha alo become the patron aint of England, Portugal, Greece, Ruia and Ethiopia, among other. In 1948, Lydda had 20,000 inhabitant. Approximately 18,500 were Mulim and 1,500, Chritian. That year, the Zionit armed band received an order from Yitzhak Rabin: The inhabitant of Lydda mut be expelled. Four hundred people were killed. Many women were raped. The population wa deported and cattered. 1,800 truck were needed to tranport what they plundered from the Paletinian propertie. Iraeli hitorian Benny Morri ha documented it. And David Ben Gurion, the founder of the State, confirmed it on hi War Diary. In Spring 2014, I found the icon of Saint George, the Paletinian martyr, in Gaza Orthodox church. It combat i till alive. GAZA AND GOLIATH (PAGE 140) Jewih, Chritian and Mulim tradition tell the tory of the warrior Goliath and David, the hepherd. The Philitine and Iraelite armie meet in the Elah Valley. David brother are part of the Jewih army. He pend hi day taking care of the heep and feeding them. Goliath, a the champion of the oldier, challenge the enemie to fight againt him in order to end the battle without a bloodbath. Everyone i afraid of him. But David offer to fight. King Saul ay to him: Goliath ha been a warrior all hi life and you are jut a young man. David replie: I have taken care of my father flock. When a lion or a bear attacked, I killed them and I recued the heep. Saul accept and provide him with hi word and hi armour. But David refue them. They are too big and heavy. He take five tone from the river and keep them in hi bag. With the ling on hand he approache the giant. Goliath i outraged by the inult of being challenged by a kid. Come here and I will give your fleh to the wild animal and bird, he ay. When the oldier lowly approache David with hi weapon, David fit a tone in hi ling and, out of a ingle hit, he knock down the powerful Goliath. In 2014, one of the mot powerful armie of the world attack one of the pooret and more iolated place of the world. Satellite, drone, fighter-bomber, helicopter, miile, detroyer hip, ubmarine, artillery, armored vehicle and tank with the latet technology are relentlely thrown againt the mall Gaza Strip. Dozen of thouand of elite oldier urround the territory along all the border. In the underground tunnel, hundred of member of the reitance, armed with rocket launcher and rifle organize the defene. They have grown up uing the ling. And they are not afraid of death. THE WOUNDED PHOENIX (PAGE 154) The city of Gaza i one of the oldet in the world. It date back to, at leat, four thouand year. Canaanite, Egiptian, Philitine, Iraelite, Perian, Greek, Roman, Jew, Chritian, Byzantine, Arab, Mulim, Cruader, Ottoman, Briton and Iraeli have lived there. It ha been conquered and liberated infinite time. It ha been detroyed and rebuilt o many time that they cannot be counted. Maybe thi i why the Phoenix i it ymbol. Ovid, the Roman poet, explain that when thi mythological bird arrive to the end of it extremely long vital cycle, it build it net with cinnamon tick. The bird itelf ignite it o a bird and net burn 13

14 SABR until becoming ahe. The new Phoenix will be born from thee ahe. Primitive Chritian ee thi myth of Greek and Egyptian origin a a ymbol of renovation and rebirth. The Arab call it Al-Anqa. The Paletinian Gaza ha been injured many time. Maybe thi i why it inhabitant have developed what pychologit call reilience. That i, the ability to face adveritie and to urvive the trauma. And the mot important of all: the miracle of becoming tronger and poitively tranformed by uffering. How to avoid hate, vengeance and depair in front of o much horror? Viktor Frankl, a Jewih pychologit who urvived Auchwitz, dicovered at the concentration camp that only thoe who were able to make ene of the hardhip could accept it and learn from it. Huam El-Nounou, from the Gaza Community Mental Health Programme, explained to me, in hi office in front of the ea, that Paletinian ociety ha two baic pillar for reilience. The firt i the traditional family and community tructure. The extended family and the neighbourhood create a network of olidarity in which no one, little or older, i ever alone. The econd pillar i the fact that they till have a ytem of traditional belief and value that give life a meaning and prepare them to what might happen. In good moment, hukr, gratitude, i hown. While facing difficultie, abr, patience and pereverance, apply. ADAM AND EVE (PAGE 160) We have been explained, in our tradition, that the origin of humanity come from a couple: Adam and Eve. And that they lived in paradie, in peace and in balance. One day, the evil force tempted them with the arrogance of diobeying God. They ate the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge and they learnt that Good and Evil could exit and that each element of Creation could be een a part of the Unity or a eparated element. Then they were ahamed and frightened for the firt time. Attaining freedom to do good and evil they opened the door to the Fall. Thi wa the Original Sin. God punihed them. Them and their offpring, who uffered with blood and weat. In the Ilamic tradition, there i a nuance in thi tory. God explain on the Quran that Adam did not betray him, but that he forgot their pact. God alo ay that Adam, aware of hi mitake, rectified to be guided again. Thi i why Adam i the firt prophet. God did not condemn Adam, Eve and humanity to uffering depite their weaknee, but he proclaimed them caliph of Creation. That i, reponible for keeping the natural Order in the world. Thi i how the path wa et; not toward a cold and inhuman anctity, but back toward the origin: to the tate of Fitra or primordial nature. Good, then, i going back to humblene and balance and to protect beauty; Evil i arrogance, to hide beauty and to generate chao. Good i the return to Unity; Evil, going toward Separation. Catalan architect and mytic, Gaudi undertood it and expreed it in a very imple way when he aid that the book than one hould alway keep open i the book of nature. An April morning I aw a young couple with their little daughter at Khouzaa field. They were reaping the wheat together, with their grandparent, brother and iter. Knelt and bare hand they were working with their ickle. Over their head, war plane roared. Some hundred meter from there, hidden behind a hill, niper were pointing at them. The family miled and you could feel peace, joy and trength jut by watching them. What wa the ecret in their heart that i unknown to u? MORALS AND LIGHTS (PAGE 168) In Venezuela I read that Simon Bolivar, leader of the Latin American independence, declared that an ignorant nation i a blind intrument of it own detruction. And he added that education alone did not uffice; moral and light were needed. The Arab world, and Paletine, are maybe in the wort moment in their hitory. Fragmented, colonized, impoverihed, corrupted and manipulated. They are prioner of all kind of dictatorhip, atrapie and fale prophet. But among all that darkne, there i a light that humbly hine. So much that too often we cannot ee it. And we are not hown it. What very few know i that the Paletinian ociety ha managed to be one of the mot cultured and educated 14

15 SABR THE POEMS of the Arab world. Depite decade of war and occupation. According to World Bank data, literacy among young Paletinian reache 98%. Mot of thee youth declare that education i their priority. On top of thi, in Paletine, there are ten univeritie. Thee number, typical of a developed country, are really impreive taking into account the huge difficultie that teacher and tudent face. Locked up, blockaded, occupied and under the bomb. But the light of knowledge are nothing without the moral. And it i here where Paletine hine tronger in a world dominated by obcurity. Becaue the education of mind, and of reaon, i eential for the human being. But it i the education of heart, faith and moral, what give it a meaning and a direction. THE GIRLS OF THE AL-ANDALUS (PAGE 182) A regular day, Valeria, the Venezuelan, and I go to Al-Andalu upermarket to buy ome food for the activit and the journalit that are taying in our apartment. Zaater, oil, date, olive, yogurt, fruit, vegetable, egg, bicuit, etc. And a lot, a lot of coffee. We call a cab, becaue we are jut two and we are carrying about twenty bag. When the car arrive, we truggle to carry the bag. Along the treet, a group of ten or twelve-year-old girl in chool uniform and carrying choolbag. Without even aying hello, they take our bag and carry them to the car. And without aying goodbye, they continue their way home, where lunch i waiting for them. Already at home, I think that my children have to be like them. Sail and wind hall fulfill my deire,following dubiou path upon the ea.north-wet and Wet wind arming againt them;south-eat, Eat wind mut now be helping them,with their friend, North-Eatern and Southerly wind,humbly praying the Northerly windto be partial to them in it blowing o that all five fulfill my return. Auià March (PAGE 14) Slow veel get lot in ea of uncertain danger. Salvador Epriu (PAGE 20) I will alway come back to our beach. The wave don t allow me, my mother, to get too far away. Maria del Mar Bonet (PAGE 22) In the creation of the heaven and the earth are ign for thoe of undertanding. Quran. 3:190 (PAGE 28) The hour of unlight in prion,a cloud reflecting a warm of creature,the people applaue for thoe who face death with a mile. And tyrant fear of ong. We have on thi earth what make life worth living. Mahmud Darwih (PAGE 40) 15

16 THE POEMS Fire on the hand today that high cloud preage a rainy Autumn and living feel trange in the middle of thi fale tranquillity. Life burn ubjected to a wheel that pin. The axe pinned in knife that deepen the wound. The blood emerge hot. The movement of it flowing a pendulum that alway return to the ame place of origin. Thi i how we walk along the vivid unconciou phere (and year feel light). All thi death, not mine, lie heavy upon me. Monterrat Abelló (PAGE 46) I never carried a rifle on my houlder. Or pulled a trigger. All I have i a flute melody a bruh to paint my dream, a bottle of ink. All I have i unhakeable faith and infinite love for my people in pain. Tawfiq Zayyad (PAGE 48) Father, Lord of heaven and earth. I praie you becaue you have hidden thee thing from the wie and learned, and revealed them to the ordinary people. Gopel according to Matthew (PAGE 96) I m with thoe of broken heart. God to Muhammad.Hadith Qudi. Related by Al-Gazhali (PAGE 58) Oh the firt year home! How far we are! Oh land that I now remember oaked in red tear! Doe being the homeland of an infant force to love it forever? She i the homeland I love, before which I am humble. I never abandoned her, I never abandoned her, I wa forced to leave. Al-Ruafi (PAGE 62) And I aked you, impatient. Tell me, when will we go to Jerualem? Tell me, when will we? When the wire will break and the line will be naturally green. We will go then. When the hafif will be continuou, from Gaza to Hebron. We will go then. When my name i not written on red ink anymore. We will go then. Then, we will never go? If you keep thinking that way... No, we will never go. Iabel Pérez (PAGE 120) [ Hafif: ound produced by the air when blowing amongt the ear of wheat at the field.] Patience i about waiting, not paively, but working peritently, even if the olution i not in the near future. Wating for thing to happen without doing everything within reach i nonene, a Saint Terea ay. Antoni Gaudí (PAGE 146) 16

17 THE POEMS The ource of all man miery i not death, but the fear of death. Epictetu (PAGE 80) Sowing death you provide higher life. Here we are with bare hand. Death forbid everything to you, each death provide me with new ibiling Max Aub (PAGE 102) You might be killed or you might be laughed at, you might be betrayed; thee are jut banalitie. What count i the awarene of being nothing unle being people. And you, gravely, have choen. After your trict ilence, you walk decidedly. Becaue what count i the example and you have to be exemplary in all, exemplary in every moment, and forget about yourelf, and be each of your people and make your their orrow, and make your their fury, and then you will entirely be, to the eye of God and to the eye of men, and you will be people forever. Vicent André Etellé (PAGE 138) I would have liked to tell you the tory of a nightingale that died. I would have liked to tell you the tory... Had they not lit my lip. Samih Al-Qaim (PAGE 118) Old land of oil lamp and orrow. Land of death without eye and arrow. Federico García Lorca (PAGE 134) The living want to die in their country no open door no open ea no open hand full of heart. Each day faith over fear. Each day a mirror of fire. A great miracle here the living are dying and the dying living a fetival of light a trip a land a blaze the ea a mirror of fire a cating of lead upon children. Their head roll off their houlder into treet. Suheir Hammad (PAGE 114) That me knocking your door. Every door, every door. But you cannot ee me. A dead child cannot be een. I became a handful of ahe that the wind dipered. Nazim Hikmet (PAGE 146) Beauty i the plendor of Truth. Plato (PAGE 150) 17

18 THE POEMS I have inherited my grandparent hope and my parent patience. And from all of them, the word I am uing now to talk to you. Miquel Martí i Pol (PAGE 170) A ea of adne rage inide u! Our deperate heart burn with eternal flame! Ibn Amira (PAGE 174) The old will die and the young will forget. David Ben Gurion (PAGE 176) Your image in my eye and in my mouth your name. You live in my heart. But where are you hiding? Ibn Arabi (PAGE 194) On regained health. On vanihed danger. On hope without memorie. I write your name. And by the power of a word. I tart my life again I wa only born born to meet you. To ay your name. Freedom Paul Eluard (PAGE 142) Patiently, then, perevere. Quran. 40:55 (PAGE 152) Beyond the wave of a ea that make u neighbour we ing you the future, your name courage, your name Paletine. From your brown kin field your tree are pulled up a if by doing o your tomorrow wa uprooted. Your children are buried when they are till miling hoping your womb to become a barren. Olive tree with a millenary detiny will be born o a bird ing your name which i courage your name Paletine. Lluí Llach (PAGE 124) I won t come to you. But you, return to u! Come back, my friend! We are all waiting for you. Ghaan Kanafani (PAGE 198) And if you find it poor, it i not that Ithaca ha fooled you. Wie, a you are now, you will undertand what Ithaca mean. Kavafi (PAGE 200) Only the ea remain. One defiant wave at a time. Samah Sabawi (PAGE 204) 18

19 EPILOGUE ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS GAZA IS NOT THE MOST BEAUTIFUL CITY (PAGE 213) It i not the mot elegant or the bigget but it equal the hitory of an entire homeland, becaue it i more ugly, impoverihed, mierable and viciou in the eye of enemie. Becaue it i the mot capable among u, of diturbing the enemy mood and hi comfort. Becaue it i hi nightmare. Becaue it i mined orange, children without a childhood, old men without old age and women without deire. Becaue of all thi it i the mot beautiful, the puret and richet among u and the one mot worthy of love. We do injutice to Gaza when we look for it poem, o let u not difigure Gaza beauty. What i mot beautiful in it i that it i devoid of poetry at a time when we tried to triumph over the enemy with poem, o we believed ourelve and were overjoyed to ee the enemy letting u ing. We let him triumph, then when we dried our lip of poem we aw that the enemy had finihed building citie, fort and treet. We do injutice to Gaza when we turn it into a myth, becaue we will hate it when we dicover that it i no more than a mall poor city that reit. Mahmud Darwih (PAGE 214) I want to thank all of thoe without whoe exitence thi book, and probably nothing I do, would be poible. To my parent, who owed the eed that keep growing up. To Bael Al-Atauni, artit from Jabalia with whom I went throught the path and the dream of the Gaza Strip. To the ten martyr of Mavi Marmara, who taught u the value of life and the defene of jutice and beauty. To Mavi Dolz, with whom, at her home and her memory, thi book ha been written. To the 2,100 martyr of the lat operation in Gaza. And epecially to the oul of the 500 killed children. To the Port, the Calderona, the Horta and the Beech Father. To nature, the book that alway ha to be read. That connect u to the heaven. To ourelve. At Home: To Xavi Sarrià and Miquel Ramo, with whom I have walked o many year and in o many project and who have been a upport and an impule for my firt 2005 documentary and my firt 2014 book. To Antonio Ramo and Maria Dolz, thank to whom thi book ha been given birth. To Joan Carle Girbé, from Sembra Llibre, for the courage and the viion to launch an independent publihing project in thee difficult day. To Vicent Chanzà, with whom I have walked for twenty year in adventure that have taken u from València to Caraca. To Xavi Giné, long term companion and determined father and creator. To Tamer and Jalal Hamdan, Paletinian and Valencian, in València and in Gaza. To Joan Cantarero, who made the impoible poible. To Dani, Marian, Lorena, Rubén. To Arrap. To Gala. To Maria Freixa. To Quique Navarro, Vicent Martí and the peaant who ow and love our land. To Marc and Alba. To Laia. To Vinarò. To Frede. To the journalit that confront fear and comfort. To Laura Arau, Luca Marco, Jordi Salvia, Sergi Pitarch, Bel Zaballa, Paco Cerdà, Jorge Ramo, Germán Caballero, Antonio Vidal, Roger Palà, Sergi Picazo, Ignacio Zafra, Vicent Partal, Joep Pitarch, Samuel Domingo and Albert 19

20 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Montón, for telling our people torie. To Guillem Agulló and hi family. To nowaday maulet. To our people, o humiliated and abued that, depite what ome would have u believe, i a nation of ancetral root, of courageou people and ecret wonder. In Venezuela: To Vivianna, who came with me to Paletine, during the dark day in prion and the brightet in Caraca. To Jurgi, Baque, Valencian and Venezuelan. To Vanea, Ócar, Alejandro, Thairon, Tritan, Johanna and Yann, with whom I learnt to tell torie. To Tea. To the Galiano family. To the people from Guarataro, San Juan and El 23 de Enero neighbourhood. To Guaraira Repano, helter and paradie. To the indigenou people from Perija and the Amazon, bation of the complete human being. To televiion worker, to documentary filmmaker and to journalit with whom I have learnt and I have fought. To Gutavo Borge, Karen Méndez, Lilian Blaer, Ángel Palacio, Saude and the Yegre brother. To André Izarra, Yuri Pimentel, William Catillo, Erneto Villega, Mauricio Rodríguez and Ociel López, who opened the door to people o a they could ay what for five centurie had been kept in ilence. To Meyalun and Anibal, for helping me to have a better undertanding of Arabic and Ilam. To Hugo Chávez, for giving hi life for dream to be born. In Paletine: To Manu Pineda, who made u break the Gaza blockade and who, miraculouly, brought a camera to me, making thi book poible. To Valeria Corté, the Venezuelan who, toghether with the Andaluian, wa not frightened and lived under the bomb and with the people. To Mua ab Bahir and Iabel Pérez, great journalit and great people, expecting to ait to their fourth wedding and their fruit. To Alaa Al-Aloul, indipenable documentary filmmaker and unconditional upport. To Ibrahim, for opening the church and the hitory of Gaza for me. To Wiam Abed, calligrapher, for hi trut and for the acred art of calamu. To Abu Amir, Kifa, Fadi, Rewa, Ana, Ira, Khaled, Mohammed, Salim, Critian, Ximo, Ferran, Joé, Ivan, Ariadna, Delia and Miguel Ángel. To Abu Haan. To the cat that died. And to thoe who are alive. To all thoe mother and father who infinitely love their children. To thoe who aved life. And to thoe who defended them. To Hayat from Aida camp. To the zebra. Around the world: To Alejandro Pedregal. To André Guijarro, Abdennur, for approaching me to the acred character of ign. To Daud, Abdeama and Ahmed from Alqueria de La Puebla de Don Fadrique. To Abdelmumin Aya and Abdennur Prado, for howing u the pirituality from the origin. To Félix Rodrigo Mora and Prado Eteban, for redicovering u tradition, rurality and the need to recontruct ourelve. Finally, I apologie to peaant, fihermen, poet, journalit, anthropologit, theologian, philoopher, writer, hitorian, tranlator and photographer for hoddily walking their path. And I deeply apologie to all my relative, friend, colleague and loved one for all the mitake made along the way. Thank 20

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