Academics, scholars, and poets, How does Israel deliberately target the Palestinian elite?

In this report, here are the most prominent scholars, academics, and poets who were killed by Israel in its ongoing aggression against the Gaza Strip since October 7.

During the bloody aggression, which entered its third month, Israel not only targeted civilians, including children, women, and elderly people, but also placed scientists and academics on the list of its undeclared targets.

It seems clear that behind such assassinations and deliberate targeting is an attempt to influence Palestinian society, including the intellectual and cultural elite, especially since the killing of scholars, academics and poets disrupts the continuity of knowledge and cultural heritage, which leads to an exacerbation of the challenges facing the Palestinian people.

In addition to Israel's bombing of universities, colleges and schools in the bloodiest and most destructive aggression in the contemporary history of the Gaza Strip, we find that the list of martyrs, which reached more than 17 thousand martyrs, includes a large number of scientific and cultural figures, which is not only a loss to Palestinian scientific and cultural life, but also to Arab and international life. also.

In this report, here are the most prominent scholars, academics, and poets killed by Israel in its ongoing aggression against the Gaza Strip since October 7:

I raised the juniper

Dr. Rifaat Al-Arair, faculty member in English Literature at the Islamic University in the Gaza Strip-

Thursday night's Israeli bombing took away one of the most powerful Palestinian voices telling the Palestinian story in English to the Western world. In an air strike that targeted his home, the academic and poet Professor Rifaat Al-Arair was martyred .

Rifaat Al-Arair (44 years old) obtained a doctorate in English literature from Putra University in Malaysia in 2017. Before his martyrdom, he was teaching English literature at the Islamic University of Gaza. He was one of the founders of the “We Are Not Numbers” project, which brought together authors from Gaza with “mentors.” Abroad, they help them write stories about their reality in English.

Al-Arair is considered one of the leaders of a generation of young Gazan writers who relied on writing in English to tell their stories. He has a book, Gaza Writes Back, in English, in which he talks about the Palestinian narrative that refutes the Israeli narrative.

He had previously published on the The specialized American website “Literary Hub” also praised it.

Sufyan is lost

The prominent Palestinian scholar and head of the Islamic University in Gaza, Sufyan Tayeh, was martyred in an Israeli bombing -

In an Israeli air strike targeting the town of Fallujah in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip, on Saturday, the prominent Palestinian physicist and president of the Islamic University of Gaza, Sufyan Tayeh , and his family were martyred, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Higher Education.

Following his martyrdom, the media and social media were filled with publications covering the achievements of the Palestinian scientist who holds a professorship in the field of theoretical physics and applied mathematics, and was ranked among the top 2% of researchers around the world in 2021.

Professor Tayeh (52 years old) won the “Abdul Hameed Shoman Award” for young Arab scientists, in addition to being appointed holder of the UNESCO Chair for Astrophysics and Space Sciences in Palestine.

Runner-up conclusion

At the beginning of this month, in an air strike that targeted their home, Dr. Khitam Al-Wasifi, her husband, Dr. Mahmoud Abu Duff, and members of their families were martyred.

Al-Wasafi, who holds a professorship in physics, held the position of Vice Dean of the College of Science at the Islamic University, while her husband, Abu Duff, was the former Dean of the College of Education at the Islamic University.

Muhammad Eid Shabir

Professor Muhammad Eid Shabir --

On November 14, Professor Muhammad Eid Shabeer was martyred, accompanied by members of his family, in an Israeli air strike on Gaza City.

Shabir is a university professor who holds a doctorate in microbiology from Marshall University in the United States, and is considered one of the most famous presidents of the Islamic University in Gaza since its founding.

Tayseer Ibrahim

Dr. Tayseer Ibrahim --

On October 17, the Hamas movement mourned Dr. Tayseer Ibrahim, describing him as “the head of the movement’s judiciary,” as a result of an Israeli air strike on the Nuseirat camp in the central Gaza Strip.

Dr. Ibrahim is a university professor, and previously held the position of Dean of the Faculty of Sharia and Law at the Islamic University.

Saeed Al-Dahshan

Dr. Saeed Talal Al-Dahshan --

In an Israeli raid that targeted their home in Gaza City on October 11, Dr. Saeed Talal Al-Dahshan and his family were martyred.

Al-Dahshan is an expert in international law and Palestinian affairs. He has a book entitled “How to Sue Israel,” in which he draws a road map for suing Israel and its leaders.