Follow these 4 influencers to stay informed about the Israeli Palestinian situation
The pain felt by the Palestinians is like an open wound. It doesn’t get enough time to heal before the next onslaught arrives. What’s more tragic is that some of us have failed to realized the issue of Palestine is a humanitarian issue rather than a political one and thus, have failed to raise a voice for the perpetual sufferings. This is not something that has occurred merely since a week or two, violent war-like experiences are a result of a seven decade old struggle (or longer), emerging from 1948 when the state of Israel was declared by the UN.
I believe that the issue of Palestine needs us to raise above and beyond the institutions and belief systems that refrain us from taking a stand against this humanitarian crisis. This is not about an ethnic group, a government or religion but instead, this is most certainly an issue that concerns all of mankind. A conflict situation in any part of the world will affect all of us, sooner or later – no man is an island – especially in the global village like planet we live in – if anything, Covid has shown us the way!
The video below is just an example of the pain felt by the Palestinians:
After 11 days of unrest and bombing which lead to the death of 232 people of which 65 were children finally a cease fire was agreed on this Friday, 21 May. However it has been reported that Israeli occupation forces stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque and launched stun grenades while the locals had gathered for Friday prayer.
There are individuals who have worked tirelessly to raise awareness about the Palestine issue and used their voices to educate the public about what’s happening in Gaza. They did this in spite of the death threats and the opposition they faced.
This article is a special dedication to all those people who have used their voices to take a stand. We bring you 4 social media influencers who used their presence on social media to spread awareness about what is happening in Palestine.
1. Khaled Beydoun
Khaled Beydoun is an author, thinker and intellectual, activist, and a law professor. He is a leading thinker on national security, civil rights and constitutional law. He has published many books including the critically acclaimed American Islamophobia: Understanding the Roots and Rise of Fear. Additionally, his work has been featured in the Washington Post, the New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Time, Salon, and ESPN. Moreover, he has appeared on various news channels including CNN, the BBC, Fox, NBC and ABC News.
In addition to his many entrancing blogs on his website he is also active on social media and through his following he creates awareness about the present conditions of Muslims in many parts of the world who are unfortunately living an oppressed life. He posts on Instagram, attempting to highlight the brutalities faced by the Muslims in Kashmir, China and Afghanistan. He did not shy away from speaking for Palestine as well. He shared posts, some rare pictures and tweets to describe to the world what was happening in Palestine. Despite his posts being taken down he did not stop speaking for the cause and still continues to advocate for the Palestinians.
Khaled Beydoun sharing a rare picture of people in Palestine – Life goes on for some, in Gaza.
He is undoubtedly an inspiration for many. His professional achievements along with his humanitarian work makes us vouch for him.
2. Hind Hassan
Hind Hassan is a journalist based in London, who primarily focuses on International News and the news in Middle East. Currently, she is a correspondent at VICE News. Before that she used to work for Sky News and Al Jazeera. For Sky News, she has reported on a range of topics including the U.K terror trails, Julian Assange and the state of Syrian refugees in the UK. Since joining Vice, she has undertaken many global stories and also raised her voice on several humanitarian crises. She was one of the first journalists to gain exclusive access to Argun prison Chechnya. She has also worked in Iraq, Azerbaijan and Afghanistan where she talked to the Talibans. Below is a clip of one of the stories she has covered:
Hind has been very vocal about the Palestine issue and she has been working for weeks in Jerusalem. In spite of the unrest Hind remained steadfast and committed to her job and she and her team continued to report from there. She has worked on a stupendous documentary; Inside the Battle for Jerusalem covering the aggression faced by the Palestinians. She has also shared some rare footage of what is happening in Palestine:
Women such as Hind, inspire us all. She is a woman with conviction who does not pull out considering how tough things can get. Her zeal and zest for her work is an inspiration for us all.
3. Mohammed El-Kurd
Mohammed el-Kurd is a Palestinian poet and writer whose work has been featured in numerous international outlets such as The Guardian, Al-Jazeera, and Pinko. RIFQA, his debut collection of poetry, will be published by Haymarket Books in October 2021. He also writes for The Nation. His family faced forceful eviction in Sheikh Jarrah and he was also detained a couple of times by the rally forces who also removed him from Sheikh Jarrah. He spoke on CNN and CBSN about the situation in Palestine and also how his fellow citizens are mistreated and persecuted. Furthermore, he also spoke about the Israeli Supreme Court Delays in Sheikh Jarrah and described the way Palestinians are living in “that is no way to live“. Here is his interview with CSBN:
Brave citizens like him encourage others to speak against injustice.
4. Kasem Hato
Famously known by the name Ibn Hattuta, Kasem Hato is a Jordanian YouTuber who makes travel vlogs in which he shares his favourite locations from around the globe. He began his YouTube channel in 2016 by the name Ibn Hattuta Travels and currently has nearly a million subscribers. He spoke against the genocide happening in Palestine and through short videos put his point across for his viewers. He tried to clarify many ambiguities and wrong perceptions that people had about Palestine. In one of his recent stories he explained that through his videos, he aims to help his viewers (who are primarily Arabs) to educate their non-Arab friends. Currently, he plans on starting his own campaign or sharing the campaigns already providing aid to people in Gaza and Palestine. He further added that he plans on producing more content in English…which we assuredly are not complaining about!
His videos like the one below, was watched by people around the globe and this aided in people understanding the situation in Palestine.
We salute the effort of each of these heroes who helped enlighten society, de-stigmatize the rumors, and speak about Palestine even when it did pose a threat to their lives. However, unfortunately, this issue has not yet come to an end, it requires solidarity & support from around the globe to allow all concerned parties in the Middle East to live freely and enjoy the blessings of a continent that has been riddled by war for far too long!
