Gaza has been dubbed a ‘graveyard’ for children by the Unicef. Israeli airstrikes relentlessly tear through neighbourhoods, schools, hospitals and mosques, leaving devastation in their wake.

For the last five months, Israel’s siege on the coastal enclave has cut off electricity, water, and basic supplies, in an attempt to push the Palestinians to the brink. The world wakes up every day to jarring images of dead babies as Israeli warplanes carpet bomb Palestinian territories, yet calls for a ceasefire fall on deaf ears.

That’s precisely why the session on ‘Ceasefire Forever’ brought the audience together on Sunday at the 15th Karachi Literature Festival held at the Beach Luxury Hotel — to shed light on Palestine and its people; their plight and suffering, their resilience and courage, and to stress that a ceasefire was the only way forward. No more excuses, no more delays. No more ‘humanitarian pauses’. It’s ‘Ceasefire Forever’, or nothing.

Salma Dabbagh, a Palestinian writer residing in London, discussed excerpts from her novel, “Out of It”, underscoring its relevance to Gaza’s predicament today. The panel discussion, titled “Ceasefire Forever,” was moderated by author and documentary filmmaker Saba Karim. The session provided insights into Dabbagh’s layered perspective on the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict.

Karim asked Dabbagh how the latter even begins to process apartheid unfolding in a place where she may not live but is home for her in so many ways.

Dabbagh started with how she is unable to articulate the feeling; a whirlwind of emotions has been coursing through her being and there isn’t much she can do about it. “But you don’t really have the space or time to dwell on those emotions and you cannot feel entitled to make a fuss about yourself. I’m very conscious of my own privilege and my level of distance,” Dabbagh added somberly.

“I appreciate my safety enormously. When I wake up in the morning, I know there is going to be a roof over my head and water in the taps. I know we’ll have food at home and my children won’t get attacked on the way to school. So, I have privilege. But of course, sometimes when I think about it, it breaks me. It’s important to keep people around you; to have a community to depend on and talk to in these times,” she added.

She is representative of diaspora Palestinians who harbour a profound connection to Palestine and — even if from afar — are deeply impacted by the ongoing atrocities there.

When questioned about whether the conflict is about Jews and Palestinians or Zionists and Palestinians as many conflate the two, Dabbagh put forth a coherent response.

“Mohammed El-Kurd, a commentator, said that Palestinians are so well-versed in their distinction between what is anti-Semitic and what is anti-Zionist,“ she explained.

“Anti-Semitism is a racist trope that seeks to racialise Jewish people and vilify them and that is deplorable; we distance ourselves from it. Anti-Zionism, however, is the idea that Jewish people have divine right to the Palestinian land. It’s an expansionist settler-colonial ideology that the Israeli state has come to represent. And that is what we condemn.”

She further celebrated recent developments in the UK — such as the case of David Miller, a professor at University of Bristol, who was unlawfully sacked over pro-Palestinian views. A tribunal later ruled that his comments were protected as anti-Zionist under the Equality Act 2020, marking a significant milestone in efforts to challenge discrimination across various sectors. Miller’s victory was the first time an individual successfully overturned fabricated allegations of anti-Semitism which have been wielded to intimidate, harass, and silence critics of the Israeli government.

The speaker also expressed scepticism about a two-state solution, citing its potential to perpetuate the hostility between Israelis and Palestinians which is already at its worst. However, she acknowledged that a one-state solution may not be feasible at the moment due to the inherent discrimination within Israel’s political and legal system.

At the end of the session, Dabbagh emphasised the importance of continued advocacy and grassroots action, even in the absence of immediate resolutions. Her words lingered in the air, heavy with the weight of their significance, echoing in the minds of those gathered.

It was a reminder that the struggle for Palestinian rights and liberation demands sustained, collective commitment — a responsibility that rests with all of us.