Why subscribe?
Hello! Welcome to my Tales of War Newsletter. Here is where I write to try to reconcile it all and put it out there. This is my attempt to connect to others in different spaces, where expression is central to navigating my own personal Journey. And I’m inviting you to be a part of it.
Who Am I?
I have been working in the international humanitarian sector for over 21 years. My journey began as a young aid worker focusing on the Middle East during a pivotal and turbulent time. It was 2000, marked by the Second Intifada in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, and shortly after, the world witnessed the fall of the Twin Towers in 2001.
In the years that followed, I found myself navigating through a series of major events: the Iraq War in 2003, the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2004, and the Gaza Disengagement Plan in 2005, which eventually led to the full blockade of Gaza in 2007 after Hamas took control of it. Simultaneously, Hizbollah was strengthening its position as a resistance movement against Zionism and leading the July war against Israel in southern Lebanon in 2006. I lived in Amman throughout the Iraqi Refugee influx crisis in 2007-2008, after which I took some time to have my gorgeous girl.
In 2010 and during the Arab uprisings of 2011, I was employed as a regional director for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) for a UK-based international NGO. I lived through the Egyptian revolution, a time of hope and exhilaration, only to be crushed years later—like so many in my generation—by the weight of collective PTSD and the harsh reality that we were now ruled by the very military regime we had sought to escape in the first place.
I left the humanitarian sector in 2015 and settled into a quieter life as a single mother in Cairo. During this time, I focused on consultancy work for INGOs and the UN community in Cairo and the wider region. I also pursued personal growth, becoming a certified yoga teacher and immersing myself in painting and all forms of self-expression.
In 2022, I returned to the sector, driven by the need to secure a better future for my daughter. By October 2023, I was working fully on the Gaza response, working for an international NGO with affiliates worldwide, focusing on the seemingly insurmountable task of achieving a ceasefire in Gaza.
Through this journey, I’ve gathered countless stories, both personal and professional—this is my space to share them and offer my perspective on what I’ve witnessed, experienced, and learned as I approach my fifth decade on this Earth.
So yes, this is more than a Newsletter to me.
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