36 kgs
36 kgs of bombs for every man, woman and child in Gaza since October 7th 2023.
36 Kg of bombs for every person. Is it possible to even wrap our minds around that?
Gaza is a bomb site, rubble, asbestos, shredded people. Blown to smithereens by hate and fear.
Little Boy was the name of the Hiroshima Bomb. It was 4,400 Kg in total and killed between 70 and 80 thousand people immediately.
Last year, when I visited Hiroshima, I was moved to my core by the commitment of the people to be a stand for peace. After such atrocity, they choose peace. You could feel it everywhere, even as you knew you walked on the bones of the dead.
My time there in Hiroshima was one of the most profound days of my life.
The Novel Prize for Peace for 2024 went to Nihon Hidankyō, a Hiroshima-created initiative to achieve a world free of nuclear weapons. Such a wise choice to contrast the cruelty and horror of the Middle East.
And the bulldozers today, driven by settlers, reduce Palestinian homes in the West Bank to rubble. Imagine if someone came and bulldozed your home down because they believed they had the right to do so.
No sanctions. Limp wrist slaps and faux anger. More money. A lot more money.
Hate festers. The leaders of the West stay silent, their voices and votes purchased by the powerful Israeli lobby. In their silence, they become prostitutes of genocide.
Yet the people are galvanising.
36 Kg.
I wonder how much more, when it will stop, and if the West will continue to roll over.
It is up to us, we, the people.
Photo Taken October 24th 2023, Article written October 30th 2024