Palestine Is Bleeding, Are You Still Feeling?

My heart is heavy with the suffering of the people of Palestine. It hurts to even hear laughter these days, knowing what is unfolding while the world watches. So many innocent lives have been lost. Civilians, children, journalists, and even rescue workers who ran toward the bombs instead of away. All murdered in cold blood by an inhuman army desperate to silence the truth and erase an entire people. But we see them. And the whole world sees them.

I carry a deep guilt. I feel guilty even to smile, while they are buried beneath rubble. Guilty for being able to eat in peace while they are starving. It has been over 600 days, and yet the killings have not stopped. Not even during Ramadan. Not even on Eid.

What hurts the most is not just the killing, but the silence. The silence of those in power who could make a difference. The inaction. And the helplessness we feel as ordinary people watching from afar, trying to do something, anything, but never feeling it is enough.

My heart is crushed by this statement from a Palestinian girl: "O worshipers of the two holy mosques, if only you had seen us, you would realize that your worship is mere play."

To all who are overwhelmed with sadness and feel as though you are alone in your sorrow, I remind you to thank Allah for even this sadness. In a world where senses are becoming numb and humanity seems to be slipping away, where people scroll past images of murdered children while eating, or post their meals right after sharing someone else's suffering, this grief is a mercy.

It is a sign that your heart is still alive. That you still possess empathy. That you have not gone silent inside.

So say alḥamdulillāh for sadness. Because this sadness anchors your sanity, keeps your heart beating for others, and reminds you that you still care in a world that wants you to move on.

And for those who were killed, remember this good news from the Prophet ﷺ: "There are six things with Allah for the martyr. He is forgiven with the first flow of blood, shown his place in Paradise, protected from punishment in the grave, secured from the greatest terror, crowned with dignity whose jewels are better than the world and what is in it, married to seventy two of al-ḥūr al-‘ayn, and may intercede for seventy of his close relatives." (Tirmizi)

So do not let your grief paralyse you. Channel it. Raise your hands and make du‘ā for the oppressed in Palestine, Syria, Libya, Yemen, Sudan, Iraq, Iran, and wherever injustice festers. Even if it is just one minute a day. One silent prayer.

Someone once asked a man protesting alone on a bridge in America, "What good will this bring?" And he replied, "It is for my own sanity."

Because that is the truth. Our du‘ā gives life to our hearts. Let us not be among those whom the Prophet ﷺ warned about: "A time will come when people’s hearts are dead, even though their bodies are alive."

So pray. Pray for those in the rubble. Pray for the children who sleep afraid. Pray for justice to be served and for oppressors to be answered with truth and consequence.

O Allah, have mercy on the innocent souls who were killed and abused. Grant strength and healing to those who survived, bearing wounds not just from their pain, but from a world that was blind and chose to look away.

O Allah, do not leave the oppressed to suffer alone. Let their cries reach You and be answered with Your justice, protection, and mercy.

O Allah, save us from the evil, inhuman, and ruthless oppressors, from the hypocrite leaders, and from all their allies. Expose their lies, strip them of their power, and bring an end to their cruelty.

O Allah, restore truth and justice in the hearts of world leaders. Replace their blindness with mercy, their silence with courage, their pride with integrity. Let the cries of the innocent pierce through the walls of power.

O Allah, raise among us brave and truthful leaders. Not those who speak in grief alone, but those who rise in resistance and truth, to rescue the people of Palestine and all who are oppressed across the world.

O Allah, send forth a peacekeeping force not of deception and politics but of sincerity, truth, and unwavering courage. Let them rise as the shield of the weak and the voice of the silenced. Not for worldly gain, but for Your pleasure alone.

O Allah, awaken the hearts of this ummah before more lives are lost. Do not let a single day pass without us raising our hands in du‘ā for the oppressed. Keep our hearts alive, full of feeling, compassion, and pain for others. Not numb, not laughing aimlessly, not lost in comfort while others are buried beneath rubble and death.

Ya Rabb. There is no refuge but in Your justice, and no victory except by Your will.

Āmīn.