The Electronic Intifada Cairo 14 August 2014
A Palestinian woman walks in the Gaza town of Khuzaa following bombardment by Israeli forces, 3 August.
ActiveStillsRead “Gaza, from the diaspora - part one”
I
Today in Jabaliya, Khan Younis, in Rafah and Shujaiya,
We are still burying the dead we find, but the living ask:
Wayn Nrouh?
(where to now)
Shu Nsawyi?
(what to do now)
Samidoun; means we last.
—
II
Habeebi, today you reminded me we under the same sky.
But Nowhere refuge. Only refugees.
Skip breakfast with militias in Benghazi, have lunch in Homs under the rubble.
Leave your house in Mosul.
Leave your house in Mosul.
Leave your house in Mosul.
Three times in one week.
Take your body to Beirut, your heart still beating in Aleppo.
Take your body to Amman, your heart still beating in Gaza.
Escape.
Take the death boats from Egypt and Libya to Italy, leave your children on the shore.
—
III
Arab Offspring forecast is cloudy;
with prospects of unseasonal paradigm shift.
I don’t know politiks, but something about this brand of terror tastes like Burger King.
Take back your Jihadis for hire.
Take back your F16s, your drones, your bombs from the sky in Iraq, in Libya, in Yemen.
—
IV
Dear Diaspora,
Maybe you have a good job.
You’re happy.
You work with Pepsi.
You work at Memac and Ogilvy.
You don’t know if they will close the Novartis head office in Beirut tomorrow because
another bomb went off.
You don’t take cabs in Cairo anyway.
You don’t want to move to Dubai like everybody.
—
V
Dear Diaspora,
Boycott.
Don’t sponsor occupation with your Jordanian Dinars, Dirhams, Dollars and Pound Sterling.
—
VI
Habeebi, I thought you lost my number, turns out you lost your legs,
On the way to the hospital from Khan Younis to Jabaliya to Rafah.
The border is closed, but my heart tunnel.
Jehan Bseiso is a Palestinian poet, researcher and aid-worker currently based in Cairo. Follow her @jehanbseiso. Contact her at: Jehan.bseiso AT gmail DOT com.
