Who will pay for the 20 years we lost?” is an essay written by the Palestinian writer Yousef Dawas. Here, he recalls the destruction of his family’s orchard by an Israeli missile strike in May 2022. The orchard was his family’s history and heritage with olives, orange, lemons, guavas, and pomegranates. For a Palestinian, the destruction of trees and orchards can be more painful that the destruction of one’s home because these things are often tied to one’s family history and heritage.
The essay was published on 14 January 2023 at https://wearenotnumbers.org/
On 14 October 2023, Yousef was killed with his family by an Israeli missile strike on his family home in the northern town of Beit Lahia in Gaza.
A tribute piece can be found at https://wearenotnumbers.org/
Yousef Dawas
