From Quds News: Yaqeen Hammad was more than a child. At just 11 years old, she was Gaza’s youngest media activist and the youngest volunteer in a charity team. With a voice far beyond her years, Yaqeen carried hope into places ravaged by fear.
From the heart of the besieged Gaza Strip, Yaqeen reached dozens of thousands through her Instagram videos. Some showcased donation projects for orphans and displaced families. Others captured her joyful moments with children, as she laughed, played, and offered gifts. Many documented her efforts to adapt to the daily hardships of life under Israeli bombardment. Her content told the story of a girl who refused to be broken by Israel’s genocide.
But on a recent night in Deir al-Balah, Yaqeen’s story was cut short.
An Israeli airstrike targeted her neighborhood, killing her beneath the rubble. The girl who once brought smiles to others became another casualty in a genocide that has claimed tens of thousands of lives in Gaza. Her death marked the silencing of one of Gaza’s youngest and bravest voices.
That night, Israeli warplanes launched strikes across the Strip. In the Shujaiya junction and the Sabra neighborhood, drones and missiles reduced homes to rubble. One strike hit the Shreiteh family residence. Ambulance crews recovered shattered bodies in scenes described as unspeakably painful.
Yaqeen often walked alongside her older brother, humanitarian worker Mohamed Hammad. Together, they delivered aid to displaced families. She handed out food, clothes, and toys with a quiet strength that inspired those around her.
Following her death, grief spread quickly across Gaza and on social media. Tributes poured in from activists, journalists, and followers who saw her as a symbol of light in Gaza’s darkest hour. “She was a child who was supposed to be in school and playing like children around the world,” one message read.
Yaqeen grew up under blockade, bombardment, and trauma. Yet she chose action over silence. Her bravery made her a role model to countless people living through the same horrors.
