My great-aunt by marriage, Su’ad Khalil Abu Toha, was born in Jaffa in 1941. She is older than Israel and is older than 97% of the current members of Congress, the President, and his entire Cabinet.
For 78 years, since 1948, Su’ad has lived in a refugee camp in Gaza City, my birthplace. She is now in the terminal stages of cancer. Doctors have informed her children, who are as old as most of the U.S. Cabinet, that there is no hope. They have been told not to bring her to the hospital because there is nothing left to be done. Even basic palliative care is unavailable. Even pharmacies are empty. That’s all because Israel has been systematically blocking cancer medications and essential treatments from entering Gaza. Su’ad’s 62-year-old son recently told me he cannot sleep because of her screams of agony.
While Congress consistently finds bipartisan consensus to authorize shipments of offensive and defensive weaponry (what’s the difference?) to Israel, there is no such urgency for humanitarian aid. The Administration sometimes even bypasses Congress when it comes to sending bombs, tank shells, and artillery munitions to Israel.
Despite international human rights organizations and experts characterizing Israel’s actions as war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide, no member of Congress has proposed exerting meaningful leverage on the US’s main ally to ensure life-saving medication reaches those in need.
A few days ago, I posted a plea for help. I wasn’t expecting a Congressional vote; I was simply hoping a single individual, not necessarily a congressperson, might find a way to alleviate Su’ad’s suffering, even for a day.
I write this now so the next generation may bear witness to our most basic demands and to the fact that our cries for help were met with more bombs on our tents in Gaza and more bullets in the West Bank.
My only wish is that Suad might find peace, and that, in some other world, she'll look at these words and, though she doesn't know English, she'll understand that I tried, that someone in the United States was seeking painkillers for her and not voting on sending more bombs.
Mosab Abu Toha
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2026-04-10 23:35:00 UTC
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2026-04-10 23:35:00 UTCEvent JSON
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"content": "My great-aunt by marriage, Su’ad Khalil Abu Toha, was born in Jaffa in 1941. She is older than Israel and is older than 97% of the current members of Congress, the President, and his entire Cabinet.\nFor 78 years, since 1948, Su’ad has lived in a refugee camp in Gaza City, my birthplace. She is now in the terminal stages of cancer. Doctors have informed her children, who are as old as most of the U.S. Cabinet, that there is no hope. They have been told not to bring her to the hospital because there is nothing left to be done. Even basic palliative care is unavailable. Even pharmacies are empty. That’s all because Israel has been systematically blocking cancer medications and essential treatments from entering Gaza. Su’ad’s 62-year-old son recently told me he cannot sleep because of her screams of agony.\nWhile Congress consistently finds bipartisan consensus to authorize shipments of offensive and defensive weaponry (what’s the difference?) to Israel, there is no such urgency for humanitarian aid. The Administration sometimes even bypasses Congress when it comes to sending bombs, tank shells, and artillery munitions to Israel.\n\nDespite international human rights organizations and experts characterizing Israel’s actions as war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide, no member of Congress has proposed exerting meaningful leverage on the US’s main ally to ensure life-saving medication reaches those in need.\nA few days ago, I posted a plea for help. I wasn’t expecting a Congressional vote; I was simply hoping a single individual, not necessarily a congressperson, might find a way to alleviate Su’ad’s suffering, even for a day. \nI write this now so the next generation may bear witness to our most basic demands and to the fact that our cries for help were met with more bombs on our tents in Gaza and more bullets in the West Bank.\n\nMy only wish is that Suad might find peace, and that, in some other world, she'll look at these words and, though she doesn't know English, she'll understand that I tried, that someone in the United States was seeking painkillers for her and not voting on sending more bombs.",
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