30 Seconds from Gaza Review

There has been some form of conflict between Israel and Palestine as long as I can remember. It kind of started filtering into my brain at a distinctly more conscious level when I was probably around 12 or 13. I obviously didn't remotely understand it at the time, but the message I began getting from social studies teachers and the news was variations of, "It's very complicated; you wouldn't understand. Don't think about it and let the politicians worry about it."

However valid that may have been when I was 12, it was repeated in some form every time things would escalate over there again. Before the current war, but far later than I'd care to admit, I finally took it upon myself to look things up and try to get a better handle on things. And you know what? It's not really all that complicated. Go look it up; there are plenty of explainer videos out there.

The current war -- in case you've forgotten since it's largely fallen out of the news cycle here in the US -- began when Hamas (notably not a part of the Palestinian government) led an attack against Israel that killed 1,195 Israelis and captured 251 as hostages. Israel then retaliated by bombing the ever-loving-shit out Palestine, routinely targeting hospitals and schools. The Israelis have so far killed over 70,000 people, 80% of which were civilians and 30% of which were children. Numerous groups -- including the International Court of Justice, Amnesty Internationa, Human Rights Watch, and the UN Human Rights Council among others have formally declared this a genocide. Israel under Benjamin Netanyahu has absolutely decimated the entire region without regard for anyone's life.

But, hey, Donald Trump likes him, so... 👍

(Let me emphasize for the terminally obtuse that thumbs up is nothing but sarcasm.)

That brings me to 30 Seconds from Gaza. Because we're a quarter of the way through the 21st century, most residents of Gaza have access to cell phones and social media, and have been recording and posting their stories. However, because most social media is controlled by the same type of people who support the likes of Netanyahu and Trump, those videos are frequently 'removed,' often under the guise of 'community standards' or some other bullshit. At the risk of sounding like stereotypical conspiracy theorist, the reality is that the videos removed because they speak too strongly or too directly to the attrocities Israel has been carrying out. The war is being white-washed. (Which is further evidenced by it largely falling out of the news cycle entirely!)

To try to counter this, Mohammad Sabaaneh began trying to capture the essence of these videos in pen and ink before they got taken down. 30 Seconds from Gaza is his collection of those illustrations over the past two years. They're not strict realistic copies of what was on the screen, but rather they portray the events more impressionistically with something of a Cubist style.

The images are powerful. Mothers cradling "martyred" children. People franctically searching for loved ones among hospital corridors. Residents lying trapped under the rubble that was once their house. Eahc image is accompanied by the date the video was posted and a brief description offering smome additional clarification; most also have a line of dialogue taken from the original video. "I do not want to take her to the mortuary fridge!" "They did not even have dinner. My children died starving!" "Keep him on my lap... Do not take him away; keep him here."

Even though the images are just black and white drawings, and heavily abstracted ones at that, it's absolutely heartbreaking.

Perhaps the most powerful piece is a 50-ish page sequence towards the end, focusing on the last moments of Hind Rijab, a five-year old girl who found herself trapped in a car with six family members who'd already been killed. She spent the last three hours of her life on the phone pleading with the Palestinian Red Crescent Society for someone to save her, and to just stay on the phone with her until they arrived. While an ambulance was dispatched, it was blown up before it reached her. Hind was later found dead with 335 bullet wounds.

This is what Netanyahu is doing. Has been doing for years now. He's needlessly murdering men, women, and children indiscriminantly. Atrocious is too small a word for this. I don't know that 30 Seconds from Gaza fully captures everything, but I don't think anything could. Hell, we've had three-quarters of a century since the Holcaust and I don't think anyone's effectively captured that either. But what this book does is ensure that at least some of these people don't get forgotten.

I've heard it said that you never truly die until your name is spoken for the last time. And while most of the people here aren't named, I think reading and remembering them through this book will keep their spirit alive that much longer. Take some time to give them that courtesy.

30 Seconds from Gaza came out last year from Interlink Publishing, so it should be available through your favorite bookshop. It retails for $22.00 US.

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