On October 9, 2023, only 48 hours into the start of what would be a year of genocidal death and destruction, renowned British-Palestinian surgeon Dr. Ghassan Abu-Sittah crossed into Gaza through Egypt just before the border crossing was sealed off and ultimately destroyed by Israel’s indiscriminate bombing campaign. 

Dr. Abu-Sittah, a multi-award-winning plastic and reconstructive surgeon, was in Gaza as one of the first responders, as he has been countless times, in countless war and conflict zones. He worked for 43 days on the frontlines, carrying out lifesaving surgeries and administering crucial care as around him a population was being massacred and their healthcare system decimated. 

One year later, Dr. Abu-Sittah is still on the frontlines, in Lebanon now, helping the victims of Israel’s attacks and exploding pagers. He has also spent the past year on the world stage, tirelessly and relentlessly advocating, educating and pleading for Gaza’s innocent civilians, who have endured a horror no one could have imagined would last this long.

AFF had the distinct honor of hosting Dr. Abu-Sittah on this milestone episode of The Gaza Chronicles marking the one-year anniversary of the start of the genocide. It has been a year in which he has faced and successfully overturned a European travel ban, fought off an attempt to suspend him from practicing medicine and thwarted various smear campaigns, at every turn defying attempts to silence him. And, still, he remains undeterred.

Hear Dr. Abu-Sittah tell us about his story, his experiences on the frontlines of genocide and his journey to becoming a lifelong, unwavering voice for his family’s home and people.

The aim of genocide is not only to decimate a population, but also to destroy its future, mowing down generations to eradicate their culture, traditions, and identities. Education is perhaps one of the highest forms of resistance to this erasure. It empowers, inspires, and allows a people to hold onto their dignity, their past, and their future.

Despite the extreme challenges of occupation, blockades, and decades-long ethnic cleansing, Palestinians place a high value on education. According to UNESCO and the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), the overall adult literacy rate in Palestine (for people aged 15 and above) is over 97%. And in terms of higher education, a significant portion of the population pursues university education, with around 30-35% of Palestinians aged 18-24 enrolling in tertiary education, including universities and colleges. As a comparison, the university enrollment rate for the same age group in the United States was 39% in 2022.

In this episode of our Gaza Chronicles series, we speak to two powerhouses who are champions of education, as well as beacons of resistance and hope for Palestine in their own way. Deya’ Leonard Dresner, Founder and Executive Director of the Leonard Education Organization (LE•O), and Israa’ Ali, Founder of Ahfad Al Zaytoun, are both dedicated to providing hundreds of students in the region with educational opportunities and the nurturing and support they need to succeed.

In conversation with AFF CEO Naila Farouky, they discuss issues such as the challenges of ensuring education survives as the bombs fall, the achievements of their students in the face of devastating odds, and their hopes for what happens next.

Dr. Javed Ali is Senior Director of the International Medical Corps’ Emergency Response Unit and leads the entire operation in Gaza. He and his colleagues have treated thousands of Gazans in nearly impossible conditions at the IMC’s two field hospitals, through multiple evacuations and displacements, often with no medical supplies or clean water. Driven by their sheer dedication to their patients and the will to keep hope alive, Dr. Ali and his team find ways to fight death every day.

On a short trip outside of Gaza to see his family, Dr. Ali shared his experiences in the field with AFF’s Nihal Mokbel, giving us an inside look at the life of a doctor on the front lines. He described the immense challenges he and his team face as they work to heal the sick and wounded while more and more Gazans are being struck down every minute. He told us what medical teams around Gaza need to be able to treat patients properly. And he shared what compels doctors like him to work in one of the deadliest places on Earth today.

HRH Princess Lamia bint Majed AlSaud’s dedication to humanitarian causes and her championing of women’s rights and equal opportunities have earned her a reputation as a trailblazer and a changemaker. As Secretary General and Member of the Board of Trustees at Alwaleed Philanthropies, she helps steer the Saudi foundation’s work as it carries out its mission to “build bridges for a more compassionate, tolerant, and accepting world”.

In an intimate, one-on-one conversation with AFF CEO Naila Farouky, HRH Princess Lamia delves into how she and Alwaleed Philanthropies are building those bridges, investing more than $4.4 billion on social welfare and initiating more than 1,000 projects in over 190 countries on issues ranging from women’s and youth empowerment to disaster relief to creating cultural understanding through education.

The discussion tackles head-on two topics that many philanthropic organizations grapple with: risk-taking and trust-based grant-making practices. HRH Princess Lamia shares her insights on how embracing risk and trust-based giving can drive more impact and inspire others in the sector to follow suit.

For nine months, Israel has been raining down destruction on the people of Gaza while blocking off access to aid and safety, creating one of the worst humanitarian crises the world has seen in recent global history.

With governments and international NGOs struggling to get into Gaza to deliver food, water, medicine, and other supplies, smaller, local organizations have stepped in to deliver life-saving support. But many of these groups have never witnessed such catastrophic devastation before and they are scrambling to get the resources and funding they need. For many of them, grassroots and viral digital fundraising campaigns have become their only lifeline as they help hundreds of thousands of Gazans try to survive the genocide.

For the first session of The Gaza Chronicles, our powerful new Speaker Series, we hear how one small local organization skillfully used grassroots fundraising and digital crowdfunding to get food to thousands of Gazans.

Hani Almadhoun launched the Gaza Soup Kitchen with his brother after watching family members and friends starve to death due to Israel’s blockades. In an intimate conversation with AFF CEO Naila Farouky, Hani talks about his life and his work, including his deep links to Palestine, with some of his family currently inside Gaza; his role as Director of Philanthropy at UNRWA USA; and how the Gaza Soup Kitchen has successfully managed to raise close to $1.3 million to feed more than 4,000 people every day.