By Hassen Lorgat
1.
First, they came for UNRWA,
many guilty voices muffled
from its caesarean birth in ‘48.
It remained the conscience of lands lost,
of lands stolen.
t’was under fire.
But I did not speak.
2.
Then they came for the homegrown ones:
B’Tselem, Breaking the Silence.
“Bad Jews”, the tag they were forced to wear
for accepting solidarity.
But the precision target was always
the Palestinian NGOs:
Al-Haq, Addameer, Defense for Children—
banned, labelled “terrorist,”
so no one could touch or aid them.
And the world nodded, remaining silent,
choosing to believe the Zionist lies.
I was among the We
that remained quiet.
3.
The jackboot now wears the mask
of democracy, law and order.
And in broad daylight,
Israel kneecaps thirty-seven
well-respected NGOs:
MSF, Action Aid, Oxfam, Caritas,
Norwegian Refugee Council, CARE—
and many more.
But do those observing care less?
Is this just business as usual?
While the dying, the hungry,
are watched on livestream—
the volume turned off.
4.
I am afraid the White House
gave the green light
to continue starving the brown people,
to keep Gaza stripped of
its lifeline to our common humanity.
But this will end—
as we speak, as we sing,
as we organize, standing strong.
5.
We must turn the tide
against the hate,
against the hungerising of the other.
We must embrace Palestine,
for it is us.
These groups gave more than food,
more than water—
they gave hope, gave sumud,
to the suffering,
and to us all.
We cannot stop now.
It is not too late.
6.
So, tell me, comrade…
How do we come together?
To embrace the now,
to rebuild from the rubble
a future
where olive trees are nourished
by flowing waters, shared,
close to every home.
A future where the peace dove
flies freely,
its beak and wings pecking and slapping into submission
the occupier’s drone.
We must embrace this future—
our future,
together.
Hassl (31.12.25)