GAZA’S RESILIENCE, HIND’S CRY: A TESTAMENT TO JUSTICE AND RESISTANCE
By Vincent Lyn
This is Hind Rajab. Just six years old — a life of innocence and wonder ahead of her, stolen in an act of unimaginable cruelty. For three agonizing hours, she begged for her life, her cries echoing into a world that has too often turned a deaf ear. Trembling in fear, she fretted over wetting herself in terror after witnessing her 13-year-old cousin and other relatives gunned down in cold blood, executed by Israeli forces.
When Red Crescent paramedics arrived to rescue her, they too were mercilessly killed. Hind and her would-be saviors were slaughtered by the same forces who had deceitfully granted permission for her evacuation. This was no mistake. It was calculated, unrestrained barbarity — a deliberate act of terror against a child.
Hind’s story is not an isolated tragedy. It is a damning indictment of Israel’s regime, where the systematic killing of children is not an anomaly but a deliberate policy. Her name is immortalized in Dublin, on a mural by Emmalene Blake, as a testament to the horrors endured and the courage of innocence lost.
Yet, Hind’s story is intertwined with a larger narrative of defiance and resilience. For 15 months, Benjamin Netanyahu waged a brutal war on Gaza, blocking every path to a ceasefire and prolonging the suffering of an already tormented population. His red lines, drawn and redrawn in obstinance, crumbled in a single meeting with US President-elect Donald Trump’s envoy, Steve Witkoff. The ceasefire agreement was clear: Israel would retreat from the Philadelphi and Netzarim Corridors, areas it had tried and failed to depopulate, and Palestinians would return to their rightful homes, including in northern Gaza.
This was not just a diplomatic defeat. It was the collapse of Israel’s 15-month campaign to “collapse” Hamas and crush Palestinian resistance. Today, it is not Hamas but the Israeli military that is battered, bleeding, and exhausted. Gaza, the battlefield where Netanyahu sought domination, has become a testament to resilience. Hamas regenerates and recruits faster than Israel can destroy, and Gaza’s people remain unbroken, their resistance a defiant cry against oppression.
The message from Gaza is clear: Palestinians exist, and their fight will persist until justice is served. Even within Israel, this truth is beginning to resonate. As Haaretz columnist Yair Assulin writes, “Even if we conquer the entire Middle East, and even if everyone surrenders to us, we won’t win this war.”
Hind Rajab’s story and the unyielding defiance of Gaza are inextricably linked. They stand as reminders of the cost of oppression and the power of resilience. Hind’s stolen life is a rallying cry for justice, and Gaza’s survival is a symbol of enduring resistance.
We will never forget Hind’s name.
We will never forgive these crimes.
🇮🇪 💚 🇵🇸
Vincent Lyn
CEO & Founder of We Can Save Children
Deputy Ambassador of International Human Rights Commission (IHRC)
Director of Creative Development at African Views Organization
Economic & Social Council at United Nations (ECOSOC)
Chief International Director at 365 Security Services
Rescue & Recovery Specialist at International Confederation of Police & Security Experts