Gaza, Palestina - Di holy month of Ramadan na time wey Muslims for di whole world dey fast. Before-before, Gaza street dey always full wit celebration, pikin dem go dey play, and di sweet smell of spice and fresh bread go dey waka for air.

I dey remember di joy wey me and my siblings dey feel as we dey help our mama prepare di main food for iftar, di food wey we dey use break our fast. We go squeeze lemon, set table, and ready for evening prayer.

We dey always start wit water and dates, follow am wit yellow lentil and pumpkin soup, before we go chop di main food like maqluba, one traditional Palestinian food wey get rice, meat, and vegetable.

After dat, di family go gather to share memory, including di childhood story of my papa, as we dey enjoy tea and qatayf, one kind dough wey dem dey fill wit cheese or nut, fry am and soak am for syrup. Later, we go go mosque for Taraweeh, special Ramadan prayer.

But dis year for Gaza, under di Israeli blockade, everything don change.

Di wahala of food sovereignty

For di 17 months of di genocide for Gaza, Israel use policy wey dey make us dey starve. Dem force us Palestinians to dey survive on animal feed and wild plants. My family, for example, dey depend on bread wey dem make wit flour wey get insect inside.

Every day, hunger dey make life harder for us. Na why I feel say I need to take small step to change di matter and provide food wey go fit sustain my family small.

Di only hope na to get food sovereignty, to define our own agricultural and food system without dey depend on outside help. Dis goal dey connect to our fight as Palestinians for land, identity, and self-determination.

Palestinians don always dey close to our land and agricultural practice. Di matter of food sovereignty become important after di Nakba of 1948, when 750,000 Palestinians lose their home because of Zionist forces, and di Israeli occupation of West Bank for 1967.

Di loss of access to our land, water, and resources, plus di destruction of crops and agricultural infrastructure, don make food sovereignty become big part of our resistance against colonization and di fight for self-determination.

As I dey follow dat legacy, I start to dey grow food for our garden wit di small resources wey we get. Dis na di time wey, by June 2024, di genocide wey Israel dey do don destroy 75% of di agricultural areas for Gaza, wey make life harder.

From missile debris to potato and bean farm

For November 2024, I clear one small garden wey get debris and missile fragments. I remember as pikin, how I dey plant seed wit encouragement from my family.

Dis time, I plant old potato wey don germinate, onion, and green beans.

I know say e go take months before I fit harvest anything. But e no matter: at least for few minutes every day, I dey forget di wahala of di Israeli genocide.

Our small farm give me hope, something to look forward to every day. For Gaza, many people don start small farm like me, for their garden, roof, and even in front of their shop for displaced people camp. Di goal na always di same: to reduce di dependence on Israel to provide food for their family.

After five months, I harvest my first vegetable. Di green beans grow first, then di onion. Anytime I pull potato from ground, e dey be like say I find treasure. I go carry am go give my mama.

E no plenty, but e don help us prepare for Ramadan iftar. And di most important thing, e don lift di spirit of my family.

But of course, when we see di rest of our family and neighbors wey dey struggle to chop, di joy dey reduce.

Di politics of hunger and agricultural resistance

For Gaza, di hunger tactic wey Israel dey use get serious impact. Over two million people, according to di Palestinian resistance group Hamas, dey face di risk of hunger and thirst as Israel don block aid delivery, including food, water, and medicine.

NGO dem wey dey work for di area talk say 345,000 Palestinians dey live for serious hunger condition for Gaza.

Israel no gree make Palestinians get self-determination or control over their land. Di Israeli army dey destroy all di farm, agricultural field, equipment, greenhouse, irrigation system, and water well anytime dem do ground attack.

Part of di wider tactic wey Israel dey use to destroy and stop Palestinian local agricultural production na to ban di entry of seed, fertilizer, and insecticide into Gaza.

Di hunger policy wey Israel dey use na to break di will of Palestinians and di connection wey we get wit our land, to create environment wey people no fit live inside.

Even wit all di effort wey Israel dey make, we don resist by planting seed. Our root still strong for dis land as we dey fight for self-determination against hunger. We love life, and di love wey we get for life dey come from di love wey we get for dis our land.