Swear to God… I saw with my own eyes a scene which will never be erased from my memory. I shall never forget that. I was standing in line in front of a bathroom at Nasser Hospital, like everyone else. I was waiting for my turn. My heart was breaking from the agony, the heat, the stench, and the crowd. Suddenly, something happened in front of me that made me feel very sad. I could not bear it.
A young man, well-dressed, with decent yet broken features, stood behind me. He was trying to stay strong but was clearly exhausted. His whole body screamed that he couldn’t take it anymore. He tried to be patient and wait, but he could not make it.
Right in front of me he lost control of his bodily functions. He, then sat down on the ground, trying to cover his face, to hide from everyone’s eyes, but then collapsed with tears dropping from his eyes. He cried, not from pain, but from shame. He felt that he had lost his dignity in front of others.
I swear, that such a scene hurts more than the bombings and the destroying of homes. In Gaza, we do not just die from airstrikes and hunger, but also in bathroom lines and neglected corners. We feel ashamed of things we should never feel so about it, if there were justice in the world.
Talk about these people and their stories worldwide. Speak of the hidden agony resulted from the feeling of loss of dignity, for this is much more painful than the thousands of rockets dropped on us.
(shared)
End this damn war.
Hani Abu Degheim
28/5/2025
