On the martyrdom of Refaat Alareer
On the martyrdom of Refaat Alareer
Refaat Alareer is no more, but his legacy will continue to inspire.
Refaat Alareer is no more. The Israeli terrorists assassinated him with 6 members of his family in a targeted airstrike in Gaza on December 6.
A professor of English literature at the Islamic University of Gaza, Alareer donned many hats. He was an accomplished writer, journalist, and poet. He was the co-founder of the We Are Not Numbers project, founded in 2014 to mentor young writers in Gaza.
His friends, students, and colleagues have paid tribute to his jovial nature and sense of humour. There will be no more jokes from one of Gaza’s finest. The Israelis have snuffed out yet another beautiful soul, adding to a scarcely believable body count touching 20,000 in just over 2 months of this ongoing genocide.
In one of his last public interviews with The Electronic Intifada, on October 9, Refaat vowed to resist the Israeli terror with whatever means he had, even if it were just his pen: “I’m an academic. Probably the toughest thing I have at home is an Expo marker. But if the Israelis invade, if they barge at us, charge at us, going from door to door, to massacre us, I am going to use that marker to throw it at the Israeli soldiers, even if that is the last thing that I will be able to do.”
He continued: “And this is the feeling of everybody. We are helpless. We have nothing to lose.” In a perfect encapsulation of the Israeli barbarity since October 7, just when an emotional Refaat pauses to compose himself, a loud explosion is heard in his background.
Alareer’s pinned tweet is a beautiful and prescient poem by him titled “If I must die, let it be a tale.”
Refaat is gone, but his dream remains unfulfilled.
One of Refaat’s students said that his professor firmly believed in the liberation of Palestine. “I will remember him for his love for storytelling, his love for Palestine, his firm belief that Palestine will be free and that we will see it free.”
Refaat knew how Palestine would be liberated. “And the way to do that is to keep talking about Palestine. To keep narrating stories of Palestine and the people of Palestine.”
As Dr. Refaat wrote:
“If I must die,
you must live
to tell my story …
If I must die
let it bring hope
let it be a tale.”
Refaat’s and Palestine’s tales must continue to educate and illuminate till Palestine is free and beyond.
Perhaps the best way to send off a poet of Refaat’s stature would be to do so with a poem. But since I claim no dexterity in poetry, my tribute to the great man will be through a poem by Faiz Ahmad Faiz, a revolutionary and giant of Urdu poetry from the Indian subcontinent.
Faiz’s poem titled Ek tarana Falastini mujaahidon ke naam (An anthem for the Palestinian revolutionaries) is a tribute to Palestinian revolutionaries. He sees the ultimate triumph of the Palestinian resistance, with their fighters ever ready to put everything on the line in their quest for liberation.
In a sense, Faiz’s poem is a continuation of Refaat's belief.
The English translation of the poem (my own) follows the transliteration of the original Urdu text:
hum jeetenge
haqqa hum ek din jeetenge
bil-aakhir ek din jeetenge
kya khauf zi-yalghaar-e-ada
hai sina sipar har ghazi ka
kya khauf zi-yurish-e-jaish-e-qaza
saf-basta hain arwah-u-shuhada
dar kahe ka
hum jeetenge
haqqa hum ek din jeetenge
qad jaal-haqqo wa zahaqal-baatil
farmuda-e-rabb-e-akbar
hai jannat apne paanv tale
aur saya-e-rahmat sar par hai
phir kya dar hai
hum jeetenge
haqqa hum ek din jeetenge
bil-aakhir ek din jeetenge
//
We will win
Undoubtedly, one day, we will win
Ultimately, we will win
Why fear the enemy’s sudden attack?
Every warrior of ours is undaunted
Why fear the assault of the dirt-sweeping enemy?
The spirits of our martyrs are lined in a row
What’s there to be afraid of?
We will win
Undoubtedly, one day, we will win
Surely, “truth has come, and falsehood has perished,”
declares God, the great
Paradise lies at our feet
And the God’s grace is upon our heads
Then, what’s there to be afraid of?
We will win
Undoubtedly, one day, we will win
Ultimately, we will win
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Thanks for the link, yes a beautiful article linking these two courageous poets. I first came across Kanafani when I read Edward Said’s “The Question of Palestine” way back in 1979 and he was one the people Said dedicated the book to.
While we honour this great Palestinian poet perhaps this is time to remember another great Palestinian poet Ghassan Kanafani also assassinated by the occupation forces in 1972. May these literary giants provide inspiration to the generation of Palestinians that will be finally free.