Um Mohammed Abu Sakheel

“Our mother was taken away from us, and all the joys of the world were lost, not only the joy of Mohammed’s wedding”

Um Mohammed Abu Sakheel.

Her dream was to celebrate the wedding of her eldest son, which was scheduled for November 23, 2023. She longed for the joy she would experience when her son, whom she watched grow up, reached the age of marriage. She said, “Finally, I will rejoice in him. Can it be true? I will celebrate with Mohammed. My heart feels the beauty of not missing out on his wedding, but there is a lump in my heart preventing me from fully rejoicing. May God bless me with happiness and grant me the opportunity to have a wonderful wedding, inviting everyone and celebrating with seven nights of henna. This is the joy I have been waiting for my whole life.”

However, when the war broke out, she said, “It’s over. There will be no wedding, no joy. How can we celebrate when people are sad and broken, and there are so many martyrs?” She did not know that she would become a martyr herself. She waited and waited her whole life for Mohammed to grow up and when he finally did and his wedding day approached, the occupation forces simply launched a missile strike on our street. My mother was among the victims, and her dream vanished along with her.

Um Mohammed was martyred in an Israeli airstrike on Gaza on November 5, 2023.