Dear Mr Trump,
I was born and raised in Gaza, a city of love and resilience, and I am writing to you as a Palestinian who has survived the genocide.
I have read your statements about Gaza and frankly, I am confused.
You claim to be a “peacemaker”, but encourage Israel to continue its genocide, calling for “all hell” to break loose if your demands are not fulfilled.
Mr Trump, we have already been through hell. We lost 60, 000 martyrs in it.
Your government, one of its guarantors, refuses to put pressure on Israel to fulfill all of its obligations under the ceasefire agreement, even though you claim credit for it.
You call Gaza a “demolition site” but conveniently fail to name the criminal responsible—while simultaneously supplying it with more bombs, funding, and diplomatic cover.
You talk about Palestinians being “safe” and “happy”, yet you refer to us as if we are a burden to be offloaded onto Jordan, Egypt, or any country willing to take us.
You claim that we “only want to be in the Gaza Strip because]we] don’t know anything else”.
You utterly misunderstand who we are and what Gaza means to us, Mr. Trump, in my opinion.
You may think of us as a mere obstacle to your vision of luxury resorts, but we are a people with deep roots, long history, and unalienable rights. Our land belongs to us as the legitimate owners.
Gaza is not your business venture, and it is not for sale.
Gaza is our home, our land, our inheritance.
No, it is not accurate to say that we want to stay because “we know nothing else.” Some of us have still managed to travel for work, education, or medical care despite the 17-year Israeli siege’s enormous hardships. Because Gaza is where these people once lived, they still come back.
An inspiring figure named Dr. Refaat Alareer, who was killed and targeted by the Israeli occupation in 2023, is a powerful example. He completed his PhD at Universiti Putra Malaysia after earning his master’s degree in the UK.
He chose to go back to Gaza where he taught creative writing and literature at the Islamic University despite having the option to stay abroad. Additionally, he co-founded We Are Not Numbers, a program that paired emerging Palestinian authors with accomplished authors to promote author engagement and combat occupation through storytelling. My voice is one of these.
Last spring, I, too, had the opportunity to leave, but I decided against it. In the midst of a genocidal war, I was unable to leave Gaza, my family, and friends. I intend to travel to finish my education, like many others, and then come back to support and rebuild my country.
This is the Palestinian way – we seek knowledge and opportunities, not to abandon our homeland, but to build and strengthen it.
In terms of building, you mention your plans to “create the Riviera of the Middle East” in Gaza. The truth is that Gaza was once known as the Middle East’s Riviera. Its ancestors transformed it into a bustling port city, cultural center, and trade hub. It was “magnificent” – to use your words – until Israel was created and it started destroying it.
And yet, after every brutal Israeli assault on Gaza, Palestinians would rebuild. Despite all the Israeli violence, restrictions and thievery, Palestinians still made sure Gaza was a safe place with a cosy rhythm of life, where its youth were doing their best to pursue decent livelihoods, where families were happy and together, and where homes thrived.
We are no longer able to live in Gaza because Israel has now attempted to reduce it to rubble and death. You have successfully supported our ethnic cleansing while maintaining a humanitarian bias.
No, Mr Trump, we will not be “happy” and “safe” elsewhere.
But I agree with you on something else you said: “You’ve got to learn from history”. Indeed, history teaches us that settler-colonialism in modern times is unsustainable. In this sense, your plans and Israel’s plans are doomed to fail.
We, the people of Gaza – like any Indigenous people – refuse to be uprooted. We refuse to be dispossessed. To allow the highest bidder to receive our land, we oppose being forced into exile. We have the right to live in our country in dignity and freedom, not as a problem to be solved.
No amount of bombs, blockades, or tanks will make us forget that. We will not be relocated, resettled, or replaced.
The fate of Gaza will not depend on wealth or power. The people who write history do so because they are against the will of the people, not by thieves. No matter the pressure, our connection to this land will never be severed. There is no substitute for surrender or abandonment. By nourishing this land with love, care, and memory, we will honor our martyrs without sacrificing our lives.
Wishing you the best of luck with your futile endeavors.
Hassan Abuqamar
Gaza, Palestine
