We are asked how we are doing?
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Sid Shniad
Oct 15, 2025, 4:17:50 PM (3 days ago) Oct 15
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We are asked how we are doing?
Here in Austria, we, the Palestinian diaspora, are asked how we are doing after the ceasefire
in the Gaza Strip. What feelings are going around in our souls? What fears and hopes are
taking shape before our eyes?
These questions usually come from sides that have not seen us over the last two years and
even did not want to perceive our existence. But what the heck, we have been like this for
decades. Our existence was perceived, if at all, as a disturbance of the idyllic landscape of the
culture of remembrance.
A mere element of undefined contours, faded retouching on the canvas of the present
burdened by the dark past. Retouching that you can't get rid of, so you try to brush it off
carefully from time to time to soothe your own pangs of conscience.
To be honest, the question came as a surprise to us, because we have hardly had time to
investigate, let alone track, our torrential feelings in the last two years. It was as if we were in
a mental turmoil and psychological confusion. Emotions whose nature and intensity were
constantly changing.
Only after 734 genocidal days is Gaza allowed to respite, and we finally get a breath of air. It's
also time to face our feelings.
At the moment, our feelings are torn between mourning, anger and bitterness.
Mourning for more than 67,000 killed, more than 169,000 maimed victims (10% of Gaza’s
population) who were only presented in the media as doubtful numbers, but embody names,
stories, hopes and dreams for us.
Mourning for the tens of thousands who are still under the rubble and the countless corpses
left in the open to be eaten by stray dogs.
Mourning for 20,000 innocent children who had a life ahead of them.
Mourning for entire families who were wiped off the civil register leaving no one behind to
Here in Austria, we, the Palestinian diaspora, are asked how we are doing after the ceasefire
in the Gaza Strip. What feelings are going around in our souls? What fears and hopes are
taking shape before our eyes?
These questions usually come from sides that have not seen us over the last two years and
even did not want to perceive our existence. But what the heck, we have been like this for
decades. Our existence was perceived, if at all, as a disturbance of the idyllic landscape of the
culture of remembrance.
A mere element of undefined contours, faded retouching on the canvas of the present
burdened by the dark past. Retouching that you can't get rid of, so you try to brush it off
carefully from time to time to soothe your own pangs of conscience.
To be honest, the question came as a surprise to us, because we have hardly had time to
investigate, let alone track, our torrential feelings in the last two years. It was as if we were in
a mental turmoil and psychological confusion. Emotions whose nature and intensity were
constantly changing.
Only after 734 genocidal days is Gaza allowed to respite, and we finally get a breath of air. It's
also time to face our feelings.
At the moment, our feelings are torn between mourning, anger and bitterness.
Mourning for more than 67,000 killed, more than 169,000 maimed victims (10% of Gaza’s
population) who were only presented in the media as doubtful numbers, but embody names,
stories, hopes and dreams for us.
Mourning for the tens of thousands who are still under the rubble and the countless corpses
left in the open to be eaten by stray dogs.
Mourning for 20,000 innocent children who had a life ahead of them.
Mourning for entire families who were wiped off the civil register leaving no one behind to
visit their graves and recite Al-Fatiha for their souls.
Mourning for the parents who waited impatiently for years for their longed-for newborn and
sacrificed their most precious possessions so that medicine could give birth to them, to
desperately watch them handed over to their inevitable fate due to lack of medical care.
Mourning for the thousands of WCNSF "Wounded child, no surviving family" children who
have lost all relatives to heal their physical and mental wounds alone without solace and to
face their uncertain fate.
Mourning for the thousands of children and young people who have succumbed to life-
changing injuries. To see how their dreams blow to the winds and their ambitions dissolve into
the air.
Mourning for the widowed women, the grieving fathers, the inconsolable grandparents and
the traumatized siblings who are desperate for answers to the questions: Why? Why? And
how did we deserve this?
Anger at the world, which has watched powerlessly as 200,000 tons of explosives were
thrown at a 350 km2 densely populated concentration camp and its defenceless inhabitants.
Mourning for the parents who waited impatiently for years for their longed-for newborn and
sacrificed their most precious possessions so that medicine could give birth to them, to
desperately watch them handed over to their inevitable fate due to lack of medical care.
Mourning for the thousands of WCNSF "Wounded child, no surviving family" children who
have lost all relatives to heal their physical and mental wounds alone without solace and to
face their uncertain fate.
Mourning for the thousands of children and young people who have succumbed to life-
changing injuries. To see how their dreams blow to the winds and their ambitions dissolve into
the air.
Mourning for the widowed women, the grieving fathers, the inconsolable grandparents and
the traumatized siblings who are desperate for answers to the questions: Why? Why? And
how did we deserve this?
Anger at the world, which has watched powerlessly as 200,000 tons of explosives were
thrown at a 350 km2 densely populated concentration camp and its defenceless inhabitants.
Anger at the world, which watched helplessly as 125 hospitals and clinics were destroyed
under the trumped-up pretext that they housed military facilities.
Anger at the world that put up with how water, food, electricity and medicine were denied to
our suffering families.
Anger at the world, which had to watch the bombing of our educational institutions, religious
and cultural institutions, infrastructure and livelihoods helplessly.
Anger at the world that watched paralyzed as our homes were razed to the ground, entire
neighbourhoods were wiped out, and millions of us were displaced into homelessness.
Anger at the world that was barely touched when thousands of our men were taken hostage,
humiliated, tortured and even raped in front of the cameras.
Anger at the world, which watched helplessly as millions of people were forced several times
under the trumped-up pretext that they housed military facilities.
Anger at the world that put up with how water, food, electricity and medicine were denied to
our suffering families.
Anger at the world, which had to watch the bombing of our educational institutions, religious
and cultural institutions, infrastructure and livelihoods helplessly.
Anger at the world that watched paralyzed as our homes were razed to the ground, entire
neighbourhoods were wiped out, and millions of us were displaced into homelessness.
Anger at the world that was barely touched when thousands of our men were taken hostage,
humiliated, tortured and even raped in front of the cameras.
Anger at the world, which watched helplessly as millions of people were forced several times
to move from one security zone determined by their executioner to another.
Anger at the world, which allowed queues of humanitarian aid convoys to be blocked a few
kilometers away from our starving families and was instead satisfied with aid deliveries
through ostentatious airdrops.
Anger at the world that allowed the privatization of humanitarian aid and instead hired
mercenaries from the Wild West who cold-bloodedly gunned down nearly three thousand
starving aid seekers and injured over 19,000, in the style of the Hunger Games.
We were embittered by the lack of solidarity, the lack of understanding and the irritating
indifference of the majority of the people in the country.
We have been embittered by the unbroken solidarity of politics with the genocidal, criminal
rogue state of Israel and at the same time turning its back on our innocent victims, abducted
civilians and our pain.
We were embittered by the instrumentalization of the dark past in order to limit protection
to our Jewish fellow citizens instead of extending it to all minorities. To oppose only anti-
Semitism decisively, which is also our task, instead of resolutely opposing all forms of racism
(including Islamophobia).
We were embittered by the attitude of our government, which voted three times in the UN
General Assembly against a ceasefire, against the termination of the "Association
Agreement" between the EU and Israel and not in favour of sanctions against Israel.
We were embittered by the lip service paid to the protection of human rights and respect
for international law, which excludes the Palestinian people from the human family.
We were embittered by the description of the situation in the Gaza Strip as if it had been
caused by a natural disaster and not by a premeditated, deliberate and systematic killing and
destruction of all the foundations of life.
We were embittered by the calls for peace that guarantees the security of the criminal
state, nuclear power Israel, instead of justice that holds criminals accountable and brings
them to court, restores the dignity of the people of Gaza (dead and alive) and ensures peace
Anger at the world, which allowed queues of humanitarian aid convoys to be blocked a few
kilometers away from our starving families and was instead satisfied with aid deliveries
through ostentatious airdrops.
Anger at the world that allowed the privatization of humanitarian aid and instead hired
mercenaries from the Wild West who cold-bloodedly gunned down nearly three thousand
starving aid seekers and injured over 19,000, in the style of the Hunger Games.
We were embittered by the lack of solidarity, the lack of understanding and the irritating
indifference of the majority of the people in the country.
We have been embittered by the unbroken solidarity of politics with the genocidal, criminal
rogue state of Israel and at the same time turning its back on our innocent victims, abducted
civilians and our pain.
We were embittered by the instrumentalization of the dark past in order to limit protection
to our Jewish fellow citizens instead of extending it to all minorities. To oppose only anti-
Semitism decisively, which is also our task, instead of resolutely opposing all forms of racism
(including Islamophobia).
We were embittered by the attitude of our government, which voted three times in the UN
General Assembly against a ceasefire, against the termination of the "Association
Agreement" between the EU and Israel and not in favour of sanctions against Israel.
We were embittered by the lip service paid to the protection of human rights and respect
for international law, which excludes the Palestinian people from the human family.
We were embittered by the description of the situation in the Gaza Strip as if it had been
caused by a natural disaster and not by a premeditated, deliberate and systematic killing and
destruction of all the foundations of life.
We were embittered by the calls for peace that guarantees the security of the criminal
state, nuclear power Israel, instead of justice that holds criminals accountable and brings
them to court, restores the dignity of the people of Gaza (dead and alive) and ensures peace
in the region.
We were embittered by the attempts to push our school children into a corner and, under
the guise of pedagogy, to provide them with misleading information about the conflict and to
intimidate them with accusations of anti-Semitism.
We were embittered by the police persecution of the anti-genocidal activists and the public
defamation of the conscientious solidarity movement. Demonstrators who want to express
their humanity peacefully and are not tempted by Hasbara's mouthpieces.
We were embittered to see how freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, academic
freedom and all civil liberties have been restricted in order to suppress solidarity with our
people.
We were embittered by the media landscape, which sacrificed its commandments of
professionalism, integrity and truthful reporting for the service of the Israeli hasbara.
We are embittered by journalists from public and private broadcasting, who merely parrot
press releases from the genocidal Israeli armed forces from their comfortable hotel rooms
and discredit the horror from Gaza as AI production.
We were embittered by the talk shows with demagogic guests, who do not present factual
arguments, but underestimate the intelligence of the viewers by accusing every UN
organization, special rapporteur, commission, and expert of anti-Semitism, even trying to
intimidate other invited guests. Some have tried to incite hatred by projecting anti-Semitic
accusations of the dark ages, which were then reserved for Jews, onto Muslims (Muslims in
Spain and Belgium control the governments and manipulate politics).
Our fears are expressed through our mourning, anger and bitterness.
Fear for the bleak future of our families and loved ones in Palestine. It may be that the
genocidal extermination machine has been temporarily brought to a standstill, it is a matter of
time before it is restarted in full force.
Fear that the rights of our people will again be sacrificed to the geopolitical and economic
interests of the powerful of this world. Fear and uncertainty about the future of our children
We were embittered by the attempts to push our school children into a corner and, under
the guise of pedagogy, to provide them with misleading information about the conflict and to
intimidate them with accusations of anti-Semitism.
We were embittered by the police persecution of the anti-genocidal activists and the public
defamation of the conscientious solidarity movement. Demonstrators who want to express
their humanity peacefully and are not tempted by Hasbara's mouthpieces.
We were embittered to see how freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, academic
freedom and all civil liberties have been restricted in order to suppress solidarity with our
people.
We were embittered by the media landscape, which sacrificed its commandments of
professionalism, integrity and truthful reporting for the service of the Israeli hasbara.
We are embittered by journalists from public and private broadcasting, who merely parrot
press releases from the genocidal Israeli armed forces from their comfortable hotel rooms
and discredit the horror from Gaza as AI production.
We were embittered by the talk shows with demagogic guests, who do not present factual
arguments, but underestimate the intelligence of the viewers by accusing every UN
organization, special rapporteur, commission, and expert of anti-Semitism, even trying to
intimidate other invited guests. Some have tried to incite hatred by projecting anti-Semitic
accusations of the dark ages, which were then reserved for Jews, onto Muslims (Muslims in
Spain and Belgium control the governments and manipulate politics).
Our fears are expressed through our mourning, anger and bitterness.
Fear for the bleak future of our families and loved ones in Palestine. It may be that the
genocidal extermination machine has been temporarily brought to a standstill, it is a matter of
time before it is restarted in full force.
Fear that the rights of our people will again be sacrificed to the geopolitical and economic
interests of the powerful of this world. Fear and uncertainty about the future of our children
from the growing Islamophobia, xenophobia, hatred and agitation of right-wing populism,
which takes advantage of media sensationalism and political outbidding.
Fear of the increasing erosion of civil liberties, which threatens our integration into society
and threatens our contribution to its well-being, if we raise our voices in solidarity with our
people.
Finally, Hope is our incurable maladie. We cannot afford to lose hope. As our great poet
Mahmoud Darwish said:
"Here on the slopes of the hills, towards the setting sun,
at the mouth of time, near the orchards with clipped shade,
we do what the prisoners do and the unemployed do:
We nourish hope."
a deeply disappointed Austro-Palestinian
Fear of the increasing erosion of civil liberties, which threatens our integration into society
and threatens our contribution to its well-being, if we raise our voices in solidarity with our
people.
Finally, Hope is our incurable maladie. We cannot afford to lose hope. As our great poet
Mahmoud Darwish said:
"Here on the slopes of the hills, towards the setting sun,
at the mouth of time, near the orchards with clipped shade,
we do what the prisoners do and the unemployed do:
We nourish hope."
a deeply disappointed Austro-Palestinian
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