Palestinian poet Rifat Al-Ar'ir was killed in an Israeli airstrike, as announced by those close to him late Thursday into Friday. He was one of the leaders of a generation of young Gazan writers who bet on writing in English to tell their stories. His friend Ahmed Al-Naeq wrote on the platform "X" that Rifat's "assassination" was "tragic, painful, and disgraceful" and a "huge loss," following deadly airstrikes witnessed in northern Gaza on Thursday evening, according to the Health Ministry in the Hamas government.
In turn, his friend, Gazan poet Moussa Abu Tawheh, wrote on "Facebook" that his heart was "broken," adding: "My friend and colleague Rifat Al-Ar'ir was killed with his family just minutes ago... I cannot believe it," as reported by Agence France-Presse. Writer and journalist Ramzy Baroud stated on "X": "Rest in peace, Rifat Al-Ar'ir. We will always be guided by your wisdom today and forever." He was also praised by the American specialized site "Literary Hub."
Al-Ar'ir taught English literature at the Islamic University in Gaza and was one of the founders of the "We Are Not Numbers" project, which brought together writers from Gaza with "mentors" abroad to help them write stories about their reality in English. Just days after the start of the Israeli ground operation in response to the Hamas attack on October 7, Al-Ar'ir stated that he refused to leave northern Gaza, which was the center of fighting. He had published a widely shared poem on the platform "X" titled "If I Must Die," ending with the line: "Let it inspire hope, let it be a story."
