Muhammad al-Zaqzouq’s ‘Writing from the Vortex of War’
“Writing from the vortex of war,” by Muhammad al-Zaqzouq, translated by Katharine Halls , recently appeared on The Ideas Letter.
It opens:
After much wrangling and back-and-forth with myself, alternately accepting and refusing, believing and disbelieving, asking what the point would be, I have decided to start writing. 106 days since we were suddenly, startlingly, swept into the vortex of war once again, I am writing so as not to become brutalized, so as not to be consumed by the pitiless machine of war and turned into a monster in a dark hole.
I have spent days paralyzed, disoriented, doubting the truth of what is happening, and all the while running the grueling course that is daily life under wartime conditions: endless queues and unimaginable humiliation for a few rounds of bread or a gallon of drinking water or a gas canister that will save us having to cook our meals on an open fire, and the constant struggle to keep up with fast-moving events, which spread dementedly from one part of Gaza to another. Running in these never-ending circles, with the convoluted details and heart-rending sights they bring, occupies all my days. There is never a moment to contemplate the turn of events that has made all forms of life in Gaza into a perpetual hell.
You can read it all at The Ideas Letter and support Muhammad al-Zaqzouq’s GoFundMe campaign so that he can afford the exit visa fees and join his writing residency in the US.
More ways to support our “Gaza! Gaza! Gaza!” writers & editors
You can support both our co-editors, Muhammad al-Zaqzouq and Mahmoud al-Shaer.
Support our contributing poet Basman Al Dirawi, through this campaign set up by his brother, theatre artist Bassem Hussen Al Diwari.
Support our contributing author Heba Al-Agha, who is trying to survive in Cairo and support relatives still in Gaza.
Support contributor and North Gazan Writer Yousri Alghoul, who is fundraising for a library to replace the one that was destroyed.
Contributor Shaimaa Abulebda has reached her goal, but they are keeping the fundraiser open in case there are unexpected fees.
You can also find a struggling fundraiser to support at gazafunds.com.
Joining these Workshops4Gaza events also supports writers and others in Gaza.