Voices of Resistance: Diaries of Genocide

by Batool Abu Akleen, Nahil Mohana, Ala'a Obaid, Sondos Sabra, Caryl Churchill (Introduction)

Overview

"An extraordinary book. Voices of Resistance opens a rare window into the reality of young women living under brutal siege: their loss, terror, and grief; their hope, ingenuity, curiosity, and humour as well as despair. These testimonials come straight from hell, and yet—read them, you’ll see—they are radiant with undiminished life."—Olivia Laing

For two years, the world has witnessed image after devastating image of Israel’s genocide in Gaza: videos, photos, and Instagram reels showing blanket bombardment, cities in ruin, and entire families pulled from the rubble of their homes. Such enormity can be difficult to process, but behind each image lie ordinary lives full of hope, love, and community.

In these diaries, four Gazan women—Batool Abu Akleen, Sondos Sabra, Nahil Mohana, and Ala’a Obaid—offer first-hand accounts of Israeli airstrikes, forced displacement, and engineered famine. These atrocities are documented alongside the everyday resilience of Palestinians: from the neighbour who fashions an ashtray from the shrapnel of an Israeli missile, to the street vendor who donates his last egg for a child’s birthday cake, to the community of displaced people who pool their resources to stage a traditional wedding. Even when homeless, under fire, forced to bury loved ones, or thrown at the mercy of a devastated health system, the writers of these diaries never abandon their humanity, their individuality, or their belief in the future of Gaza.

ALL PROCEEDS FROM THE SALE OF THIS BOOK WILL GO DIRECTLY TO THE WRITERS AND THEIR FAMILIES.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781771967181
Publisher:	Biblioasis
Publication date:	10/14/2025
Pages:	224
Product dimensions:	5.25(w) x 8.25(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

Batool Abu Akleen is a twenty-year-old Palestinian poet and translator, born and raised in Gaza City. She is a student of English Literature and Translation at the Islamic University of Gaza. At the age of fifteen, Abu Akleen won the Parjeel Poetry Prize for her poem ‘I Did Not Steal the Cloud’, which was also translated and published as part of the anthology Di acqua e di tempo. Her poem ‘I Want a Grave’ was published in Penguin’s Letters from Gaza (2025). She was the 2024 Poet-in-Residence with Modern Poetry in Translation, for whom she collected and translated Sea Shells: An Anthology of Emerging Poets from Gaza (edited by Cristina Viti). Her poem ‘Gunpowder’ was among the winners of The London Magazine Poetry Prize 2025. Her debut bilingual poetry collection 48Kg was published by Tenement Press in June 2025. Extracts from her diaries have been performed by Leila Herandi at the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry.

Sondos Sabra, 25, holds a bachelor’s degree in English Literature from the Islamic University of Gaza and is a founding member of the Shaghaf Youth Initiative, which organises discussions of literary works. She is a translator and writer. Her writing has appeared in Mondoweiss, The New Statesman, and ArabLit Quarterly. Extracts from her diaries have been performed by Yusra Warsama at the Barbican Theatre, London, and Sama Rantisi at the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry. Her piece ‘We Kill Terrorism’ was read by Maxine Peake to a crowd of 15,000 protesters outside the 2024 Labour Party Conference in Liverpool.

Ala’a Obaid is a writer and a mother of three children. She has held a number of positions in various NGOs and cultural institutions in Gaza, including Education Officer, Creative Writing Teacher and Culture Centre Coordinator. Ala’a co-authored the books Writing Behind the Lines and Disturbing Flashbacks, both of which document the experiences of Palestinians living through the current genocide. She has published several articles in The New Arab. Excerpts from her diaries have been performed by Hind Shoufani at the Barbican Theatre, London, and by Zarah Sultana MP at the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry.

Nahil Mohana is the author of the novel No Men Allowed, the short story collection Life in a Square Metre and six plays including High Pressure, which received the 2008 Abdul Mohsin Al-Qattan Prize; Ghoson, which received the 2008 Children’s Culture Award; and Lipstick, which was produced by the Royal Court Theatre, London. Her writing has appeared in AGNI Online, Literary Hub, and The Washington Post. Extracts from her diaries have been performed by Maxine Peake at the Barbican Theatre, London, and Julie-Yara Atz at the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry.

Editorial Reviews

Praise for Voices of Resistance

“From immortal terror will also spring the impossible triumph of maintaining one’s humanity. One can only hope that as long as these powerful voices continue to speak to us, we—and anyone with the power to stop this ongoing genocide—will repay them with our listening.”
—Justin Goodman, Asymptote

“Hopelessness, depression, fear, grief, frustration, and outrage dovetail with ‘ordinary’ moments of hope, joy, humour, and celebration . . . it’s impossible not to be moved by these devastating, honest human accounts dispatched from on the ground.”
—Thalia Stopa, Scout Magazine

“The power of this collection lies in its diverse assemblage of voices, which sometimes depart and other times converge, illuminating the myriad perspectives and challenges of a people under attack . . . Voices of Resistance stands as a vital work of testimonial literature that refuses to be forgotten.”
— Francesca Vawdrey, The Markaz Review

“Its pages pulse with an urgency . . . The artistry and creativity displayed by these four remarkable women both astonish and humble readers. Detailing their lives amidst unimaginable dangers, their narrations boast powerful storytelling, poetic flourishes, and poignant homages to literary greats . . . Instead of cold numbers and abstract political jargon, these pages offer irrefutable proof of lives lived and spirits tired, but unbroken.”
—Fifi Bat-hef, The New Arab

“Their words go beyond the frame, enlarging the picture the world is seeing. And what they beautifully manage to do, is to make the audience stay in Gaza for more than thirty seconds. Voices of Resistance: Diaries of Genocide requires of the reader an emotional strength to see Gaza in depth, to follow day by day—or for as long the genocide allows them to write—the thoughts of Batool, Sondos, Nahil, and Ala’a.”
—Assia Belgacem, Arab Lit Quarterly

"This is the most powerful work of collective testament I have ever read. It is a breathtaking and spirit-forging book. It tells it as it is. It could not be more crucial or more urgent. Read it now."
—Ali Smith

"An extraordinary book. Voices of Resistance opens a rare window into the reality of young women living under brutal siege in the 21st century: their loss, terror and grief; their hope, ingenuity, curiosity and humour as well as despair. These testimonials come straight from hell, and yet—read them, you’ll see—they are radiant with undiminished life."
—Olivia Laing

"It isn’t true that there are 'no words' to describe life in Gaza during the genocide. The words are here—brilliant, devastating, unexpected. Read them."
—Kamila Shamsie

"These diaries show us the human cost of Israel's UK-backed genocide in Gaza. When the F-35s drop their bombs, this is where they fall and this is who they fall on. Yet the women in these diaries exhibit strength and dignity that the barbarity of colonialism can never diminish. Their love of family, of community and of the land passed down to them through generations, is more enduring than all the weapons of imperialism. As these testimonies demonstrate, Gaza will survive and Palestine will be free."
—Zarah Sultana MP

"Read this book and weep, but read it also with such admiration for these four women and the community from which they come."
—Rebecca Servadio

"Heart-breaking yet illuminating, these diaries from Gaza are a must-read for all people of conscience."
—Xiran Jay Zhao

From the Publisher