Sétif, ALGERIA – Gaza is a land where the rhythm of daily life has become a struggle for survival.
Bombings, blockades and endless violence turned homes to rubble and streets into graveyards.
Listen to the author read this commentary:
Daily life – going to school, eating with the family, walking to the market – was taken from thousands of citizens.
At the center of the tragic sorrow are the children, growing in a climate of fear and desolation, their lives fractured before they’ve had a chance to live.
This is not just a conflict between states. This is a deep human crisis in which citizens at the grassroots are the victims of choices made in faraway, deliberative spaces.
Hospitals overflow with victims, assistance is ridiculously short, and even those institutions that are meant to be safe havens – refuge centers, schools, shelters – have tragically become targets.
As young onlookers from a distance, we are challenged not to become complicit in turning a blind eye to this pain.
We are not here to serve as inactive witnesses.
We can pressure those who govern to promote a speedy cessation of conflict. We can be a voice calling for humanitarian assistance to reach those who are most in need.
Most importantly, we must not let the people of Gaza be forgotten.
This is not a question of taking sides in a political discussion. It is an invitation to join our common humanity.
This is about recognizing the dignity and inherent worth of all people and staunchly resisting the extermination of innocent lives and their possible futures.
Gaza weeps towards the world, but the question remains: are we hearing it at all?
Abdellah Bouberima is a Junior Reporter with Youth Journalism International from Algeria. He wrote this commentary.
Milana Yarychkivskiy is a Junior Reporter and Senior Illustrator with Youth Journalism International from Dresden, Germany. She made the illustration.
