PA TV positive portrayal of suicide bombing
PA TV broadcast a video during the 2014 Gaza war which appears to encourage suicide bombing. The video was based on a poem written by Mahmoud Darwish, the Palestinian national poet. While some literature analysts say the deeper meaning of the poem is a critique on suicide bombings, the words PA TV chose to include in its video clip seem to present suicide bombing positively:
"She [Gaza] wraps her waist with mines and explodes,
It is neither death nor suicide.
It is Gaza's way to declare its right to life
She scratched the enemy's face
And repelled them from satisfaction with time,
because time in Gaza is something else
In Gaza the enemy could be victorious
The high sea could be victorious on an island.
They may cut down all her trees; they may break her bones
They could plant tanks in her children's chests and women's bellies and throw her into the sea, sand or blood
But she will never repeat the lies or say "yes" to the invaders;
she will continue to explode
It is neither death nor suicide.
It is Gaza's way to declare its right to life."
Mahmoud Darwish is considered the Palestinian national poet. He published over 30 volumes of poetry and 8 books of prose and has won numerous awards. He joined the Israeli Communist Party in 1961 and the terrorist organization PLO in 1973, becoming a member of the PLO Executive Committee in 1987. He left the PLO in 1993 because it signed the Oslo Accords with Israel.
Many in Israel see his poetry as inciting hate and violence. One poem he wrote in 1988 at the height of the Palestinian wave of violence and terror against Israel (the first Intifada, 1987-1993) calls to Israelis: “Take your portion of our blood - and be gone… Live wherever you like, but do not live among us… Die wherever you like, but do not die among us… Leave our country, our land, our sea, our wheat, our salt, our wounds, everything, and leave the memories of memory.”
He also wrote “Silence for the Sake of Gaza” in 1973, which many see as glorifying terror: “She wraps explosives around her waist and blows herself up. It is not a death, and not a suicide. It is Gaza's way of declaring she is worthy of life.”
His defenders have claimed that Israel misinterprets his poetry and that he sought reconciliation with Israel. One wrote in 2017: “Darwish arranged meetings between Palestinian and Israeli intellectuals, and published essays on their discussions. He was optimistic that, through mutual understanding, the two sides could eventually reconcile.” [https://www.bcalnoor.org/]
"She [Gaza] wraps her waist with mines and explodes,
It is neither death nor suicide.
It is Gaza's way to declare its right to life
She scratched the enemy's face
And repelled them from satisfaction with time,
because time in Gaza is something else
In Gaza the enemy could be victorious
The high sea could be victorious on an island.
They may cut down all her trees; they may break her bones
They could plant tanks in her children's chests and women's bellies and throw her into the sea, sand or blood
But she will never repeat the lies or say "yes" to the invaders;
she will continue to explode
It is neither death nor suicide.
It is Gaza's way to declare its right to life."
[Excerpt from "Silence for Gaza" by Mahmoud Darwish,
Trans. Adib S. Kawar, Tlaxcala, Official PA TV, July 17, 2014]
Trans. Adib S. Kawar, Tlaxcala, Official PA TV, July 17, 2014]
Mahmoud Darwish is considered the Palestinian national poet. He published over 30 volumes of poetry and 8 books of prose and has won numerous awards. He joined the Israeli Communist Party in 1961 and the terrorist organization PLO in 1973, becoming a member of the PLO Executive Committee in 1987. He left the PLO in 1993 because it signed the Oslo Accords with Israel.
Many in Israel see his poetry as inciting hate and violence. One poem he wrote in 1988 at the height of the Palestinian wave of violence and terror against Israel (the first Intifada, 1987-1993) calls to Israelis: “Take your portion of our blood - and be gone… Live wherever you like, but do not live among us… Die wherever you like, but do not die among us… Leave our country, our land, our sea, our wheat, our salt, our wounds, everything, and leave the memories of memory.”
He also wrote “Silence for the Sake of Gaza” in 1973, which many see as glorifying terror: “She wraps explosives around her waist and blows herself up. It is not a death, and not a suicide. It is Gaza's way of declaring she is worthy of life.”
His defenders have claimed that Israel misinterprets his poetry and that he sought reconciliation with Israel. One wrote in 2017: “Darwish arranged meetings between Palestinian and Israeli intellectuals, and published essays on their discussions. He was optimistic that, through mutual understanding, the two sides could eventually reconcile.” [https://www.bcalnoor.org/]
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