We Are Not Leaving

A Message to the Israeli Occupation Army

I am Yousri Alghoul, a Palestinian writer, journalist, and civilian like the vast majority of Gaza’s population today, if not all of them, since you have already killed the fighters and their families.

I did not displace to the south of Gaza before, and I will not flee today. I will remain in what’s left of my house, much of which has already been destroyed. I simply cannot walk forty kilometers on foot while there is no transportation left. You’ve destroyed the cars, buses, trucks, and even animal-drawn carts.

I cannot carry gallons of water, household items, books, clothes, bedding, and some food just to live in the open under a sky swarming with your warplanes, the same drones and planes that do not distinguish between a child or a woman and wait patiently for my death, as you have done to hundreds of my people every single day. 

You kill with brutal, ruthless methods: snipers at the gates of American aid (GHF), shelling civilian houses, burning tents, or burying children alive beneath the rubble. 

That is why I have decided to stay; to resist.

Even if your artillery continues raining bloodshed on innocent people in the streets and homes, even if it costs me my life. You show no regard for any human life other than your own. You are filled with deep hatred for others, including Christian brethren, and Judaism, like all true religions, is innocent of what you do.

I will not displace anywhere. Do what you will.

#WeAreNotLeaving