Fadi Abusaid.
With enormous difficulty in communicating with the outside Fadi Abusaid he manages to get his voice. His words are a response to the article that appeared on FC last Saturday 6 August, in which his parents, who managed to reach Pisa last year, launched an appeal to get his son, the daughter -in -law and the four grandchildren, still trapped in the heart of Gaza. Ahmed and Sanaa Abusaid, elderly parents and grandparents, have asked for help so that the family can rejoin. Under the rubble and in inhuman conditions, Fadi tells what it means to live every day in a besieged territory.
How are you, and what is happening to Gaza City right now?
«Thanking God, we are still alive. We cling to gratitude for the blessings that have remained there. But life here has become unbearable; It is one of the hardest realities that a human being can see or live. Extreme famine, deep poverty, and a constant fear, day and night. We move every moment by expecting the fall of a grenade, a missile, or a bomb. We no longer know how to calm the fears of our children, how to reassure them, how to satisfy their need for a quiet life – or simply offer them some of the food they love. The oldest desire of my little son today is to eat a piece of chicken. He dreams of tasting a piece of chocolate. But all this is swept away by the sound of an explosion … who makes him jump in my arms, or to take crying by his mother, looking for a refuge behind her, in search of security ».
Fadi asks himself almost silent by lowering his voice on the phone: “Why does all this happen to us?”.
And he adds: «And there is no clear answer … only more fear, another pain. We haven’t been electricity for two years. You can only imagine what it means to live without electricity, without nourishing food. We feel like a flock, forced to eat poor fodder, without choice or dignity. The sense of human dignity has faded – swallowed by scenes of humiliation that have crushed our humanity. The suffering we live is too big to be described with words. As the Arab proverb says: “It is not like seeing what you hear telling. Every day here it seems to last a year or more – as if the weather had stopped, waiting for the moment when we can embrace our parents. Waiting to bring together our family – grandparents, children, grandchildren – and perhaps so recover a little of lost dreams … and find some serenity in our hearts”.
His parents live in Tuscany. Many people here now know you and ask that you and your family can meet your parents. What do you expect from us?
“One of the most comforting sensations, which relieves the weight of worries and fears – and gives us strength to resist – is to know that someone thinks of us. It reminds us that we are not alone, that there are people who feel our pain and support us. Every word of support, every action undertaken, every voice that rises to defend our rights means a lot for us. He gives us hope and gives us back a fragment of human dignity that we have lost under the rubble, between the sounds of terror and the daily difficulties of survival. We sincerely hope that you can continue with your efforts and support. Without you, we cannot go out. You are our voice beyond those walls isolated from bombing.
As he read, his parents’ words are full of hope to embrace you all. What does the “hope” for you and her family represent?
«Fadi Abusaid: hope and optimism were the most important sources of strength that helped me resist in these harsh circumstances. Without hope, everything collapses. But with hope, even the most difficult moments can be faced. For me and for my family, hope means gathering us again – grandparents, children, grandchildren – taking the first step to resume a life that remained in suspense for too long. Hope is to go back to studying, to work, to grow our children by transmitting them the sense of humanity and the value of life. We want to return part of what they have lost in the past two years, take care of their inner wounds and open a window on a future worthy of them, as human beings. It is the hope that every morning makes us get out of bed, despite everything ».
What would you mean publicly to your family and the world from there, from Gaza City?
«To my family who is in Italy and all of you, that you are interested in us and our situation I want to say that we are strong thanks to you, and you are the most important part of our hope. I deeply appreciate your feelings, your fear, and the great concern you brought with you throughout this war. We thank for your affection, your constant attention, your desire to reassure us and stay close. We miss a lot, and we continue to hope that soon we can embrace you, if God wants. I would have liked to keep these words within me – keep them in the heart and offer them in silence to God – to protect your hearts and do not cause further pain. But I don’t feel weak. Indeed, I feel I have the strength to overcome this test, with the help of God and with your support in the heart. And in the world I mean: we are human beings, with emotions like anyone else, deep, forged by our values, by our education, and by our spiritual and moral commitment. We are not simple numbers in the news. We are doctors, engineers, academics, entrepreneurs, workers … we want to progress, build, contribute with integrity and serve the noble purposes for which humanity was born ».
