Day 3 of Israeli aggression on Gaza: 98 killed, 675 injured

Day 3 of Israeli aggression on Gaza: 98 killed, 675 injured

Gaza, July 11, Israel launched a new aggression\operation\offensive against Gaza and decided to name “Protective Edge” also known as “Solid Rock”. Israeli warplanes, tanks, drones and warships participated in bombing places across Gaza all day long. This makes it the third Israeli open war against Gaza in 5 years or less. This isn’t a report, this is a personal account of what I lived today through the third day of Israel’s new aggression on Gaza.

Third day is over, it was yet more intense than the second day. Israel didn’t stop bombing Gaza for a second, consecutive explosions spread across Gaza shaking the ground under us. Israel used Apaches, drones, F16s, warships and tanks against Gaza. Israel expanded its targets in Gaza and bombed houses, school, university, hospitals, cars, media, motorbikes, bus, mosques, A CEMETERY, humans and pretty much anything and everything.

Its getting a little boring to stay homebound and depressing to watch Israel commit repeated massacres like Kaware’ family (bombed a house while people where around it forming a human shield to protect it), Khan Younis beach Café, Ghannam houses and others. Five to eight people were killed, or even more, due to every massacre and many others injured.

What bewilders me is those illogic bombings on ex-Gaza international airport that Israel already flattened to the ground so many years ago, yet this airport, in Rafah, Southern Gaza, got hit so many times between shelling and bombing the past few days. Why? Its already destroyed.

Also, bombing a cemetery? Seriously? Cant the dead have some peace?

And then comes those double and triple bombing of houses that were already bombed. Why use six+ F16 rockets on a house when the first rocket already blew up the hell out of it? Well, my dear Americans, that’s your tax dollars at work.

Israel bombed everywhere across Gaza. The northern and southern parts took all the heat as usual but also the eastern and western parts weren’t left alone.

Israeli warships bombed Gaza’s coastline which set Gaza Ark and other boats on fire.

Diane Sawyer, of ABC news, made a stupid mistake by airing photos of Palestinian war victims claiming they were Israelis, but thanks to alerted Palestinians and pro Palestinians who immediately pressured an apology out of them on air.

Allot of news was spreading about a possible ground invasion. Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbass, said a ground invasion will happen in the matter of hours, while Israeli defense minister, Moshe Yaalon, went out and announced the start of a ground invasion against Gaza, but then Israeli news said it will happen on Friday (Today) without mentioning a certain time.

Israel also threatened to cut water, electricity and internet in Gaza to isolate it from the world, not like they haven’t done it before.

In times of this, you try to hold onto the last once of your humanity because its very easy to lose it and become inhuman. Its an inner conflict that goes on every day.

I am a civilian, yes, but where are my civil rights? Hell, where are my human rights?

Palestinian life matter, even if the world wants to turn its head to the other side and act like nothing is happening.

It hurts more when you see children dying, or elderly people, or mothers. This war is witnessing family love even in death. Many mothers were killed with their children, a pregnant woman and her infant were killed, a mom died shielding her children who died with her too. Siblings were bombed while they are holding each other or sleeping next to each other, twins too. Dr. Anas Abu AlKas, owns a pharmacy, was killed yesterday after his house was bombed. Anas was an only child, his mom and dad were killed by Israel during cast lead, and he was killed yesterday.

Again, when I choose not to sleep and track the news instead since its too noisy to sleep anyway, I start thinking about life and wondering about humanity.

Egypt opened Rafah border to let Egyptian-nationality holders pass before the wounded. And decided to extend Rafah border’s opening till today to let them pass, but not let the wounded pass. Also, some Egyptian media are actually supporting Israel’s aggression on Gaza.

Not that we ever had hope in Arabs, but the lack of reaction or media coverage is shameful. Some Arabic hotshots on twitter choose to tweet about random stuff instead of covering Gaza news.

We are nearly half way through Ramadan, the first few days were actually amazing until Israel began this new aggression in Gaza. We got so busy with tracking the news that Ramadan is down to fasting for us, it makes me sad because I was enjoying Ramadan this year.

Living through this war is like living through multiple dimensions at once. Life here is normal but not normal at the same time, if you get what I mean (you probably wont unless you live in Palestine or somewhere similar). There is a point where you go through a normal life but then it clashes with the point that you are actually living through a full blown war. Yeah war. Such an easy word to say if you lived through old wars before, but nonetheless a war is a war with all the ugliness and darkness it brings.

US consulate in Jerusalem sent emails and text messages to American citizens in Gaza asking them to immediately depart and offered them assistance but didnt comment yet on Twitter regarding Israel's aggression against Gaza.

Day four has started. If you look at how sunny and beautiful Gaza is this morning, with the birds chirping, you wouldn’t think it’s a wounded city that is being bombed viciously and actually bleeding.

Shout outs: To medics (several got injured), to doctors, journalists on the ground, Palestinians inside and out of Palestine and also occupied Lands of 1948, Pro Palestinians everywhere and to the special friends and people who send their daily support, love, compassion and prayers.

Will we witness an Israeli ground invasion in Gaza today or not? I don’t know. Time will tell so stay tuned.

From a beautiful but wounded Gaza,

Omar (@Omar_Gaza) #GazaUnderAttack #GazaUnderFire #ProtectiveEgde 

Gaza: The Hunger Games

The Art of Surviving

Little did the millions who watched “The Hunger Games” film series know that a similar reality actually exists, its not a fictional realm that the creator came up with. Yes, its called “Gaza”. A beautiful little coastal enclave that the least adjectives you can use to describe it are those like “impoverished”, “suffocating” and “Primal”. A little place on the map that suffers from an Israeli imposed siege and is always tightly sealed by Egypt. We can safely and accurately say that Gaza is the biggest modern open-air prison.

You might go through a dilemma or two in your life, but if you live in Gaza, your mere existence is a dilemma in itself. Your life is like a Marionette except its extra polarized and the strings pull you in different directions.

You are expected to aspire for better and higher education, yet thanks to Israel and Egypt you’ll need 10 miracles to get out of Gaza to seek such education. Palestinians are among the most educated and clever nations, we land scholarships so easily (which is supposed to be the hardest part) but visa and border issues always halts the process. Your dream is murdered, sometimes repeatedly.

You read serious reports made by NGOs like UNRWA who say that Gaza wont be livable by 2020, population will grow and life will decline. Many other reports mention the high rates of poverty, water pollution and scarcity, weak infrastructure, unemployment rates skyrocketing, inflation in the population and diseases widespread (like cancer).

Then comes the regular Israeli attacks on Gaza, plus the daily violation of the air space that usually leads to a major headache after all the buzzing and hovering over on low altitudes. People injured or killed, buildings are destroyed, blood is spilled and life is disturbed.

The whole world expected the “Arab Spring” to “blossom” in Palestine, or more particularly, in Gaza. Palestinians living in Gaza have turned into numb robots who are always judged, attacked and bossed around by every other country\nation.

We are asked to topple Hamas. What then? Settle with the PA? No, topple the PA too. Ok, but don’t forget that our main concern is ending the occupation. Yeah, we are expected to also topple the occupation. Wait, so we should end the internal Palestinian division, then topple both factions, then free Palestine? All that while we are hated, judged and attacked by the Egyptian media on a daily basis, which is starting to affect the Egyptian people who are now hating on those who live in Gaza, only because Hamas rules Gaza. Hmmm, collective punishment comes to my mind here, similar to Israel’s way in dealing with Palestinians. Interesting.

Oh, and let’s not forget how we are always judged by the international community. Every Palestinian living in Gaza is considered to be a Hamas member (terrorist) just because it’s the ruling regime, even those who didn’t vote for Hamas, which is highly and very inaccurate and wrong. Nearly two million people reside in Gaza, how is it fair to assume that all of them are Hamas?

As if Gaza isn’t separated enough from the West Bank, and we already feel the internal division and Israeli siege and separation, you have those who live comfortably and safely in their homes abroad and yet sit behind a screen to tell you that Gaza isn’t occupied. Yeah, Israel withdrew, ok, but Israel has a siege imposed and attacks Gaza whenever they have free time or extra fuel. Whatever you say, those people wont change their minds, they don’t know the kind of life you are living.

The US promises and swears to always be Fidus Achates with Israel. Hence AIPAC and all the Israeli domination and prominence. But who will support Palestinians if they aren’t even capable of supporting themselves or each others?

Lets put all that aside for a minute. Lets analyze the daily life here. Due to the high poverty and unemployment rates, people are occupied by making a living. If I had to pick one thing that stands out as the main common factor between Palestinians here in Gaza, or in Palestine, its going to be "HARD WORK". Yes, they just want to earn a living, no matter what it takes.

Rich, middle class, poor and homeless people are always busy making a living or thinking of ways to secure money and put food on the table even if its through street begging. Yes, even rich people here aren’t safe. Plus, those who actually afford to “live a little” rarely do because they are either afraid of the future or feeling guilty. Guilt springs from the horrible situation that explodes by the minute and its all before your eyes.

We are\were slowly trained to adjust to any living situation, no matter how bad it gets. Guinea pigs? Yes. We are opened to any situation. You might think it’s a positive thing, but if you don’t grasp the seriousness of this issue and how dangerous it is, then you’ll never get it. It’s the main reason behind us settling with being mediocre and thinking its okay. Well, its not okay.

We go through daily power outages, 8-12 hours cut, and that’s during the good days. We went through three weeks of no electricity during Israel’s first full-blown war on Gaza. Our sea is polluted with sewage water, so the water is also polluted. You can put two and two together and imagine how all of this highly affects and complicates every aspect of life.

Those who appreciate the beauty and nature of Gaza, or love the “Arts” and decide to defy their families and society by choosing such an understated field that generates no money, are usually ridiculed or accused of living in denial. You find yourself lost between feeling guilty of being hopeful and seeing the bright side, instead of being obsessed 24\7 with the ugliness of the details of life here. God forbid you say Gaza is beautiful, people will say you have gone mad. Even you, in your own mind, you scold yourself for believing in the obvious yet ignoring the common dark side of this same obviousness.

We are resilient. Life doesn’t stop here. But we don’t realize how much we are paying for this resilience. A very high price, in such a harsh era we live in. We are losing our humanity. We are becoming rude, inconsiderate and cutthroat. I wish this was a desultory fact, but it isn’t. We are detaching and becoming despondent. We are becoming less human and more animal-like who are only bothered by surviving in the forest.

If you yearn for a normal life in Gaza, you are in big trouble. Life can never be normal here, and if you try and live a normal life, you’ll be abnormal. People will judge you and make you feel less patriotic or passionate about your country. If you ever craved traveling for vacation, forget it, both Erez and Rafah are journeys from hell, assuming ofcourse you were lucky enough to have 10 miracles that might secure you a chance of exit.

If you yearn to Jerusalem, then wait till you are 50, or till you are very sick or you are blessed with a good job at one of Gaza’s many useless NGO’s who milk the Palestinian cause and launch huge donation campaigns with no real effect on ground. Or else, Israel won’t let you past Erez.

If you have best friends in the West Bank, then plan a meeting in any country but Palestine, for a chance to see them, only if Egypt has Rafah opened and you are okay with humiliation and being treated like a herd of sheep.

If you live in Gaza and you want to excel, then good luck and may God be on your side. With very few opportunities around, little resources and no major organization to support you, the competition is really high, like really really high and super tough, cutthroat. You have to shine brighter than the sun to be recognized.

If you live in Gaza, you realize that you CAN NOT live in it and you CAN NOT live out of it. When you are in, you will yearn to go out, and when you are out you will die to get back in to your family and your land. You are destined to a polarizing life. You are required to master the art of survival.

If you live in Gaza, you should smile and move on, but hold on very tightly to your humanity and everything that makes you the way you are. Live, love, be happy and be sad. See the obvious, with all its colors\shades\sides. Try to be a bit normal, but be clever enough to recognize that you will never be completely normal. Be humane, be you and be strong. Lets survive, without turning our surroundings into a jungle. Lets keep dreaming of a better world.

With love,

Omar Ghraieb

Samer Issawi is free, renewed belief in popular & nonviolent resistance

Samer Issawi is free, renewed belief in popular & nonviolent resistance

Gaza, December 25, Samer Tariq Issawi, born December 16, 1979 in Issawiyeh, north east of Jerusalem, is a Palestinian iconic hero of nonviolent resistance. On 15 April 2002, Samer was arrested by the Israeli army in Ramallah as part of “Operation Defensive Shield” during the Second Intifada alleging he was affiliated with the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine.

Nearly 10 years later, in October 2011, Issawi, then serving the ninth year of a 30-year jail sentence, he was released along with 1027 Palestinian prisoners as a result of an Egypt-brokered deal between Hamas and the Israeli government for the return of Gilad Shalit, Israeli soldier kidnapped by Hamas on Gaza’s borderline. However, on 7 July 2012, he was arrested again.  His lawyer Andre Rosenthal stated that he had been taking his car to be fixed at a garage in the West Bank.

He was convicted of an 8 months sentence so he went on an open hunger strike since August, 2012.

Palestinian political prisoner and resistance icon Samer Issawi was released on Monday after spending over 17 months in the Israeli occupation detention centre Shatta Prison.

"Samer Issawi's family was ordered by Israeli terror police earlier today not to celebrate and to take down the flags raised at their home," according to The Free Samer Issawi Campaign page on Facebook.

Issawi ended his 265+ day long hunger strike on 23, April 2013 after accepting a deal brokered by Israeli and Palestinian officials to serve eight months on charges of violating bail conditions for an earlier release.

The law, which has been in place since the end of the British mandate in Palestine in 1948, allows for the arrest of Palestinians if they are deemed a "threat" to Israel's national security.

 Palestinian hunger strikes have posed a new challenge to the Israeli government, which has come under international criticism for its practice of detaining prisoners without trial.

Samer endured hell from his warders happen to be the occupiers of his land. They tried every possible physical and mental torture strategies to stop him from hunger striking but they failed. He stayed strong, he represented steadfastness and preferred death than giving in to injustice.

Samer said it loudly to the Electronic Intifada: “ I would prefer to die on my hospital bed to being deported from Jerusalem. Jerusalem is my soul and my life”, and he meant every word. He defied occupation with nothing but an empty stomach and won, he never compromised. They offered him a deal of being released and exiled to Gaza, he refused, he insisted on returning back home to Jerusalem and he got what he wanted. His defiance gave hope to the Palestinian masses inside and out of Palestine, he reignited the spark of popular resistance and proved that nonviolent resistance actually works. His release inspired festivities and celebrations across Palestine.

Samer’s family got popular too, they showed the same defiance when they talked to the media but the rising star was his sister Shireen Issawi, who represented the strength of Palestinian women. Shireen never gave up, she fought viciously for her brother on social media and stood by him every step of the way. Shireen became a role model and a symbol of strength and endurance, just like her brother.

Medhat Issawi, brother of Samer Issawi, was released only a few days before Samer after spending nearly 20 years off and on in Israeli jails for participating in protests and intifadas.

It was definitely a happy day for Palestine and a historic one nonetheless. Gaza united with the West bank and was anxiously waiting for Samer’s release. It was a national celebration and Gazans made sure they are a part of it and sent their love and support to the Issawi family even though many couldn’t track his release through live coverage due to daily power outages.

Samer Issawi is free, Palestine will be free.

Tell the world: Samer Issawi is coming home

Samer Issawi is coming home

(A poem I wrote for Samer is at the bottom of this post)

Gaza, April 23, Samer Issawi is set to be released 8 months from now.In a brokered deal between the Israeli authorities and Samer's lawyer and family, Samer Issawi will serve another 8 months starting from today and then be released and back to his home with no conditions or any foreign exile.

Rumors have been spreading online for a while about so many deals with so many different details but this deal was confirmed by Samer's family and lawyer, which means that it will happen if Israel doesnt break its promise and slam the deal against the wall. Its noteworthy that Israel is unpredictable and doesnt keep promises, so lets pray and hope and see.

Samer Issawi was released back in October of 2011 as a part of Shalit's release deal. Israel released 1027 Palestinian prisoners in return of Hamas's release of Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit.

Israel then re-captured Samer Issawi in 2012 and held him with no charges or trial. Samer started hunger striking for freedom and till yesterday he passed over 8 months of hunger striking breaking any world record out there. No word yet whether Samer ended his hunger striking or not, but he went back to taking his Vitamins after stopping for a day or two in a step of escalation. 

Samer Issawi has seen unprecedented support from inside and outside of Palestine, people everywhere stood by him and showed support by taking the streets and hunger striking in support of him and honoring him in a way by appreciating his bravery.

Samer Issawi's family, especially his sister Shireen who works as a lawyer, played a great role in imposing pressure and raising awareness about Samer's case. Social media also helped in channeling support and creating awareness and pressure.

Perhaps Samer Issawi's release is the most anticipated event in Palestine these days. This is a picture of Samer Issawi's mother after hearing about the deal of her soon-to-be released son:

 

In 8 months from now, and only a week before 2014, Samer Issawi will be released and back with his family so Palestine can enter a new year full of hope and anticipation for freedom and justice.

Samer Issawi turned into an iconic figure, a hero and a representative of Palestine's steadfastness and strength for choosing to starve himself for freedom. Palestinians look up to him for he has given them hope and faith in a better tomorrow, Samer will be free and Palestine will be free.

Samer Issawi lost allot of weight and his health is in mere danger, he will need a long rehabilitation time after his release to revive his weak body who kept fighting while being fueled with a strong will and a thirst for freedom.

 You were born to fly

With a strong will

And a head held up high

And steal wings

You were free before humanity came

A hero with a special name

A truth stronger than a claim

bringing your jailers to shame

Your mother prayed and prayed

you were never afraid

you knew you would win

you knew you would prevail

Your body is weak

But your soul is not harmed

You will soon be released

Received with cheers and open arms

No matter who doubts or hates

No matter what it takes

The world awaits

For you to come home

You are coming home

To where you belong

To Jerusalem 

To the rock covered by a dome

From Gaza with love and hope,

Omar

4m Gaza 2 NYC: Mission Impossible

4m Gaza 2 NYC: Mission Impossible

Gaza, October 14, I have been hesitating about writing this post or waiting. But I actually might not make it to NYC so I decided to write everything that happened to me since the 1^st "4m Gaza 2 NYC" post, so you better buckle up because it’s a hell of a bumpy ride.

Hmmm I don’t even know from where to start. Ok, so after definite guarantees from a news agency in the West Bank that I wrote for, I decided to go ahead and apply through Jerusalem. I didn’t know what was waiting for me. In fact, many were commenting on how confident and assured I was. They made fun of my optimism but it didn’t affect me at all.

I sent all the required documents to the news agency and I had strong faith that I will DEFINITLEY get a permit to visit Jerusalem. After all, I am not affiliated with any Palestinian faction, I don’t have any security issues and I am a journalist. Many other Palestinians cross Erez, so why wouldn’t I cross to?

September and October were loaded with Jewish holidays so I collected some needed patience (You must know that patience isn’t one of my virtues) and waited with a smile. The number of people who thought I was crazy for applying through Jerusalem increased, but I didn’t care and I never lost confidence.

Ofcourse, during my waiting period, I skipped job interviews and cared less for any job opportunity since I will be leaving to NYC soon, or so I thought. I only went to an UNRWA job interview and I took the whole thing lightly although I did really good.

I let all my friends in Jerusalem know that I am coming soon. I wanted to meet them all and I was very excited that I will be visiting Jerusalem. Honestly, my excitement about Jerusalem topped my excitement for NYC. I would sleep and dream about walking in the streets of the old city and the alleys of Eastern Jerusalem and wake up the next day with a smile on my face.

I googled some amazing hotels in eastern Jerusalem, took addresses of some interesting places I want to visit and made a schedule that contains the names of places and people I wish to meet and see. It was crazy that I will have only two days but I was determined to make it work.

A few days ago I got a call. I was asked for an interview by Israeli authorities on Erez check point so they can determine whether I should be given permission or not (a permission to visit my own land, no comment). I kept an open mind until I learned that the interview was on October 22^nd. I will not have any time for my interview in the US consulate in Jerusalem and will def. have no time to get to Cairo on time if I was ever granted the visa. And this interview won't guarantee me a permit.

So I quickly shifted all my plans and efforts to the US embassy in Cairo. I thought it will be just like the one in Jerusalem and boy I was very very very wrong.

Now I have a few days to finish the procedures of a new US visa application, pay again, schedule a meeting in US embassy in Cairo, get there to do it, wait and then make to NYC in time. You might think its possible, but trust me its not.

I decided to take today off to consider whether I wanna go through this anymore or not. I decided that I wont go down without a fight. Cairo sounds like a long shot but I am gonna do it even if I am gonna waste time, energy, nerves and money and even if I know that there is a 90% chance of failure. I am Palestinian, we never give up and we never go down without a fight.

The death of your dream\s is a price you have to pay for living in besieged Gaza. Its not your fault yet you have to pay the price anyway. But what I am trying to tell the world is: Living in Gaza doesn’t mean we are not allowed of having dreams and making those dreams come true. That is why I am not giving up no matter what.

I got an email with an important yet not final\guaranteed book offer but I couldn’t be happy about it because all I can think about now is whether I would be able to make it to NYC or not. I have seen support and I am very thankful but with all due respect to everyone no one feels what you are feeling or goes through what you are going through but you.

This is so major for me on so many levels. I try to explain it sometimes but I feel. This is linked to so many things that I will mention later but the most prominent issue that I see from everything I went thru lately is that: People in Gaza are humans too; they have the right to dream\travel without going through hell and back. Gazans get scholarships\training and many other offers to travel but they cant, they are trapped. Not only Erez is impossible and Rafah is hellish but also the battle of obtaining a visa is a crisis by its own self.

This inspired me to send this email to the US consulate in Jerusalem:

"Dear Sir\Madam,

I write you today hoping to have my voice heard. My permit to Jerusalem has been denied and I have only a week to get to Cairo, schedule an appointment and go through it. This means that there is a 90% chance that I will no longer be able to get a US visa. 

I applied for a US visa because I was invited by the UN for a media training. Only a few elite Palestinians are chosen each year and they chose me this year because they saw in me a prominent journalist, social media pioneer and a public figure from Gaza (per to what they said). New York has been the city of my dreams for a long long while because NYC is a dynamic, passionate yet serene city and we are very much alike. NYC is the city of dreamers and I am a dreamer.

But thanks to the fact that I live in besieged Gaza, this dream has ended before it even started. 

I hereby send you an urgent request to try to find a solution for the people from Gaza who wish to apply for a US visa because they were chosen for a scholarship, training, tour .... etc. Why dont the US consulate consider opening a representative office in Gaza? or maybe interview the people from Gaza through skype (which is a method used internationally and professionally).

Its devastating to struggle for a couple of months to make ur dream come true but its even more devastating to watch your dream die without being given a chance even. My dream and the dreams of many young people here in Gaza have died because of the hardships we go through to try to obtain an interview at a US consulate here or in Cairo and we failed for reasons that have nothing to do with us and that arent in our hands.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE consider my request. Atleast my dream wouldnt have died for no reason. You have the chance to help many people realize their dreams so please just consider discussing my suggestions. 

Just because we live in Gaza it doesnt mean we dont have the right of dreaming and realizing our dreams.

I have confidence in you. 

My best regards of gratitude, respect and hope.

Thanks."

I am waiting for their response. If they don’t respond, then I will start a petition.

We have the right to live, have equal rights, have dreams and be respected like everyone else and its about time we demand this.

I hope this sparks a change. If I got to NYC or not, atleast I would have made a change that will lead to facilitate a person's life in Gaza in his\her pursuit to make dreams come true.

Love,

Omar from BESIEGED Gaza.

From Gaza to New York – Phase 1: Survival

 From Gaza to New York – Phase 1: Survival

When you usually ask people about their hobbies many of them will mention traveling. I don’t blame them, who wouldn’t enjoy traveling the world and exploring new cultures? I know I would. But if you live in Gaza, traveling can never be your hobby unless you want to kid yourself.

I was shortlisted, chosen and invited by the UN (United Nation) Headquarters in New York for media training. The Palestine, Decolonization and Human Rights Section,

UN Department of Public Information, usually invites Palestinian media practitioners every year for 5 weeks of media training.

I feel like the timing of this is perfect. 2012 has been an overwhelming year, allot of good and bad, but I did achieve allot. I am among the top 5 rankings of the 100 most influential Palestinians in Social media next to names like: Mourid Al Barghouti, Ali Abu Nimah and many other awesome Palestinian public figures. Its surreal and humbling but most of all it gives you reassurance that you have a voice and you are on the right path in getting it heard.

Ofcourse, I was ecstatic. I have been craving New York for nearly a year now and I cant stop saying how much I want to visit it, then the UN training came and actually offered me the chance of making my New York dream come true.

So if you were NOT Palestinian and NOT living in Gaza: All you have to do is visit the nearest US consulate, fill the visa application then head to the airport on the day of the assigned travelling trip. But gladly, I am Palestinian and I do live in Gaza. 

So my anticipated trip to New York is divided into a number of phases. Phase 1 is all about survival. Taking it one step at a time but having a nervous breakdown every day. UN provides everything but the US visa, obtaining the visa is our responsibility and I am sure you know how hard obtaining the US visa is.

First, you have to choose between applying for the visa through Jerusalem or Cairo. Its like choosing between dying by a lethal injection or dying by an electric chair. If you choose Jerusalem: It will be hard or even impossible to get an Israeli permit, even if you do, you won't guarantee passing Erez checkpoint (linking between Gaza and the West Bank) peacefully. And you cant guarantee that the Israeli authorities will issue the permit before your actual appointment.

If you choose Cairo: You are risking losing so much time and spending so much effort. You would have to go through Rafah border a couple of times to reach Cairo and apply for the visa and wait for your appointment or maybe head back Gaza and visit Cairo again when the appointment time comes if there is too much time in between. You cant guarantee the always-closed Rafah border, you cant guarantee reaching Cairo and you cant guarantee managing to head back in time for your appointment.

The good news is: Even if you went through all that, you cant guarantee actually obtaining the visa. Good news? Who said good news? I think my dark humor is kicking in.

Say you obtained the visa by a miracle, YOU ARE NOT OVER YET. You still have to cross Rafah border, and what do you know about Rafah border? Aside from the endless hours of waiting on the Egyptian side for no legitimate reason, and aside from all the humiliation you will be showered by the Egyptian border soldiers, you might not be able to guarantee your entry to Egypt and catching your plane on time. Or they might simply ask you to turn back and go home without giving any explanations.

While people worry about going shopping before they travel, we worry about making constant traveling arrangements to guarantee that we actually reach New York.

Whenever I get nervous about the border, the airplane trip, reaching New York, the UN training, thinking about possible futuristic inner conflicts about staying there or coming back, I just stop and remind myself: "Omar, you still haven’t finished your visa application and even when you do you might not be able to attend the appointment, and even if you do you might not get the visa". So, I calm down again for a few seconds and promise myself to take things slower but then I go to being nervous a little afterwards.

This is the price you have to pay when you live in Gaza, a besieged impoverished costal enclave that is smothered by Israel and Egypt is there to tighten Israel's grip. Nothing is guaranteed. Instead of daydreaming, shopping and planning, you just sit and wait and contemplate and wish and hope and work and push and try and apply and ask and…… .

You will have only the last minute to worry about shopping, obtaining international health insurance, packing and all these stuff.

Stay tuned for Phase 2: THE VISA SAGA….. If and whenever that happens.

Love, support, peace, humanity, equality and hugs (and kisses don’t hurt),

Omar from Gaza