In Gaza, a few notes of beauty amid the devastation
These young people, most of whom live in makeshift tents like their teacher and his family, all belong to the Gaza Birds Singing collective. Each week, the group performs once or twice at concerts organized near the neighborhood market or in the reception area for displaced people. Their performances are systematically broadcast on Instagram, where the 40-year-old music enthusiast has more than 20,000 followers.
These short videos, shared tens of thousands of times on social media – especially a version of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" in English and Arabic – have turned the father of five, whose children are aged 7 to 17 and who has been forcibly displaced 12 times with his family since October 7, 2023, into a symbol of resilience. They are proof that art and beauty can reemerge from the rubble.
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For once, the sound echoing around the tents in the Rimal neighborhood of Gaza was not that of drones and Israeli bombings. On the evening of Wednesday, July 9, a few guitar chords – some in tune, some less so – and melodies hummed by children's voices could be heard. Ahmed Abu Amsha, a guitar and singing teacher, rehearsed classics from the Palestinian repertoire with around 10 students, aged 10 to 20. These young people, most of whom live in makeshift tents like their teacher and his family, all belong to the Gaza Birds Singing collective. Each week, the group performs once or twice at concerts organized near the neighborhood market or in the reception area for displaced people. Their performances are systematically broadcast on Instagram, where the 40-year-old music enthusiast has more than 20,000 followers. These short videos, shared tens of thousands of times on social media – especially a version of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" in English and Arabic – have turned the father of five, whose children are aged 7 to 17 and who has been forcibly displaced 12 times with his family since October 7, 2023, into a symbol of resilience. They are proof that art and beauty can reemerge from the rubble.
