His wife died cradling their baby. Now he has this message for Australia

Sydney Morning Herald

a day ago

'It's a sign that you're actually supportive of us Palestinians. It's very important,' he says.
Sameh's father, Adnan, adds: 'Palestinians are an educated, generous, peaceful people and for this [attacking] to happen to us is unjust, so recognising us offers an element of justice.'
At the same time, they have close knowledge of the starvation and suffering that is unfolding on the ground on Gaza. Their immediate concern is the safety of their relatives, who face threats of frequent missile strikes and go days at a time drinking only water with salt or stock cubes.
Adnan wants the government to push further and show their goodwill with real action to stop Israel's assault.
'Our whole lives as Palestinians, we've heard a lot of words and promises, and we are fed up with just words, we need actions.'
According to Gaza's health ministry, Israel's military has killed more than 61,000 Palestinians, half of them women and children. The assault has also caused a humanitarian aid crisis, widespread malnutrition, the displacement of most of Gaza's population and a region in ruins.
The assault began after Hamas militants attacked southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1200 people and taking 251 hostages. Israeli authorities say 20 of the remaining 50 hostages in Gaza are still alive, and are demanding Hamas release them.
The Israeli army is now preparing to mass-move Palestinians to execute plans to further escalate its offensive to take over Gaza City and ultimately the entire strip.
During phone calls to Gaza, the Murad family lies to relatives when asked about what they've been cooking, watching as their bodies fade away.
'Often they just stop talking because they're so frail. They'll say a few words then lose the energy to speak,' Samah says.
Sameh remembers their once-joyful life in Gaza City. Their front door was never closed with the house – now turned to rubble – always buzzing, and twice a week, dozens of relatives would arrive for gatherings.
'We were in a cage but we were free within that cage.'
He says he and Dina had a seven-year 'love story'. They were married in March 2021 and, he says, his wife loved being a mum.
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'She was so happy, her head was in the clouds from the first time she heard Mayan's heartbeat,' he says.
'I'm feeling really lonely, like there's a vacuum. I did everything with her.'
Fleeing Gaza was difficult, both practically and emotionally, but the family eventually decided to leave with the help of an Australian-Palestinian aunt and charity donations, making it out before the Israeli military closed the border.
They are doing their best to live a normal life, working and learning English, relieved to have recently been granted permanent residency.
Waseem still has shrapnel in his left leg and foot, which healed malformed after the October 2023 bombing. He is awaiting surgery to break and reconstruct his bones.
The girls are in childcare, which has been particularly helpful for Mayan, who still cries out for her mum when upset.
Sameh says he was moved to see the enormous crowd march over the Sydney Harbour Bridge earlier this month, an event he says helped him feel more welcome in Australia.
The Palestinian community has had diverse reactions to Albanese's decision to recognise Palestinian statehood at September's United Nations General Assembly, along with the UK, Canada and France.
The federal government's support is tied to a set of commitments from the Palestinian Authority, which leads the West Bank, including that Palestine would be demilitarised and Hamas would play no role in its governance.
Palestine Australia Relief and Action founder Rasha Abbas, whose organisation has helped about 1600 Palestinians settle in the country, says the acknowledgement of Palestine is long overdue.
'For new migrants, any sense [of] being seen gives them a sense of safety because they are in a new country,' Abbas says.
'Whether it's being able to select on government forms that 'I am Palestinian' and children in schools being able to point on a map and say that's where they're from … that is an important part of being proud and asserting who you are.'
But she stresses that while it's a 'good first step', the government must pull whatever levers it can to stop the humanitarian disaster.
'At the front of everybody's mind, the immediate need of all those people we support here is the safety and wellbeing of their families [back home]. The focus is ending this genocide,' she says.
Israel denies claims of genocide which have been brought before the International Court of Justice.
Free Palestine Melbourne protest organiser Mai Saif says recognition isn't nearly enough. She says the movement will continue marching to call for an immediate ceasefire and for the Australian government to sanction Israel, impose a two-way arms embargo and cut military ties.