In the Shuja’iyya neighborhood of Gaza, where the rubble of houses lies scattered like autumn leaves and it is difficult to distinguish the sound of human voices from the sound of explosions, the story of Muhammad Mushtaha began, a young man who experienced life and death in a single moment. Before Israel’s genocide, Muhammad Mushtaha was a sighted young man, full of life and dreams, walking through the narrow streets, laughing with his friends, planning a future he believed would be bright despite all the difficulties.
Muhammad Mushtaha: resilience in the face of horror
One day, Muhammad Mushtaha went out in search of food and aid for his family, accompanied by his friend. They were walking down a street that had become a death zone since the start of the war. Suddenly, a strike fell from the sky, killing his friend before his eyes, while Muhammad fell to the ground. The blow struck his head and eyes, and the light went out of his heart and soul. He could no longer see anything, but the pain was worse than the darkness: the pain of losing his sight, the pain of losing his security, the pain of losing the world as he knew it.
Amidst the rubble and smoke, Muhammad did not collapse. He crawled through the ruins, gathering all his remaining strength, until he reached Al-Shifa Hospital. There he received medical assistance, but he left the hospital without light in his eyes. Nevertheless, his heart did not succumb to despair. Every day was a challenge for him, a journey between death and life, between fear and hope.
Muhammad Mushtaha was not content to simply endure hunger and darkness; he decided to continue living. To love, to choose joy. He got married while blind, in a small ceremony attended by family and a few friends, where his wife’s hand held his to tell him that life was not over yet. The wedding was a cry in the face of war, a message that love is stronger than bullets, and that joy can be born in the heart of rubble.
A symbol of resistance
Today, Muhammad is no longer just a young man who lost his sight, but a symbol of humanity and resilience. His story carries a message to anyone who thinks that war can destroy the spirit: light does not die, even if it is absent from the eye, and love is capable of illuminating the densest darkness. With every step Muhammad takes, with every laugh he shares, there is a victory over death, over despair, over everything that war wanted to steal from Gaza.
This story is not only about the loss of sight, but about the ability of the spirit to rise above it all, about a man who can find beauty and life amid destruction, about the joy that is born despite all the sorrow. Muhammad Mushtaha teaches us that life is stronger than war, that hope can sprout from the rubble, and that love can bring light back to a heart even when his eyes are darkened.
Featured image via the Canary
