596 Days of Genocide in Gaza — A Message from a Heart Heavy with Truth

I am Dr. Hussam Hammouda, from Gaza. I write these words with a heart burdened by sorrow, by fire, by truths no mind can fathom. Today marks the 596th day of genocide — 596 days of bombardment and massacres, of siege and hunger, of losing loved ones one after the other. I am not writing for sympathy, but as a witness from the heart of death.

In Gaza, no one has been spared from this hell — not even doctors, who were supposed to be a refuge for the sick, have escaped. The latest was my colleague, Dr. Alaa Al-Najjar, who worked with me at Nasser Hospital. Alaa… a mother who received the charred bodies of her nine children, unable to recognize them except by their small names. And this wasn’t her first tragedy — less than a year ago, she lost her newborn twins just six days after birth due to congenital heart defects.

I too have received my uncles and their children — burned beyond recognition. No features, no identities, just ashes and tears. I couldn’t recognize them, even though I’m a doctor and a surgeon. Moments like that break the soul. Can you even imagine, for just a second, bidding farewell to your family in such a way? I swear you couldn’t bear it.

Imagine this ongoing devastation, and still, we say “Alhamdulillah” (praise be to God).
We say it with torn hearts, as our children go hungry, our patients die — because there’s no medicine, no hospital, no beds.

In the midst of this hell, we still dream of life. We are not just numbers in the news — we are human beings. We love, we cry, we hope. We just want to live in peace. Don’t we deserve that? Don’t we have the right to dream of a future? To live safely?

I write this message with a deep ache in my heart, but I still hold on to hope.
Because despite everything, we are still here. Still resisting death — with bandages, with prayer, with truth.
And Gaza — despite all the destruction — still pulses with life.

Support us by sharing the truth. Do not be silent.
We love life. And we deserve to live it🙏💔