Thursday 30 March 2017

Egypt greatest women




Yes… I cried… and even sobbed until my body shook and could not draw my breath in… Yes… I felt human and weak and my mind went in a detailed strict long review with myself, ideas, beliefs and behaviour… and again, yes… I felt so small compared to them while they were standing like high trees… unshaking… patriots… aware of what is right and wrong.

Yes… I was watching mothers, wives and daughters on TV… the bereaved mothers, widowed wives and orphaned daughters since Yemen, 67, attrition, October 73 and terrorism wars… I also saw Sisi, the minister of defense and minister of interior standing in the hall… I realized that this country will survive as long as such women live in it.

While I was crying and feeling weak, I thought of the group of people I am supposed to belong to… this group good at talking of all kinds; thinkers, intellectuals, authors, writers, journalists, experts of delivering seminars, conferences, protests in that triangle area between Tharwat, Adli, 26 July and Ramses streets in downtown… I found that all the bla bla bla of this group is nothing compared to the greatness of a single mother of those who has a martyr and two sons left in the police and army… also compared to the daughter who was orphaned while she was just five years old.

Some will immediately say that this is a cheap demagogic populist manner… and the one who adopts it feels no self-worth at all and shall not ask others to do the same… and much more will be said… especially in that language I am not good at… the language of top activists…despite all this, I stick to my stance and ask myself first…

How could we leave a family – and other hundreds if not thousands of other families – without the proper care for five decades… meaning for 50 years… and how have this family of a young 25-years-old widowed wife and two daughters; one of them was not even five years old and the other was still a baby survived after the father; a young not-exceeding-27-years-old army officer martyred and they were then told that he was missing?

How has this daughter – that wouldn’t have been that strong and powerful unless for this by all means great mother whom the daughter named the living martyr – realized that Al-Arish and Sinai are not only national land we must keep but also a graveyard for the martyrs among them her father who was killed along with his battalion when the criminal devil Sharon ordered them be buried alive?

How could anyone of those who worship revenues and money… those hypocrites… make relations with the Zionists and exchange visits with them?… and even boast about this.

The heroine daughter directed her speech to the president and asked him to keep Al-Arish and Sinai for Egypt and not let go of them no matter happens… he, in turn, replied in low-in-tone great-in-significance voice that we will not abandon Al-Arish… after all this, we find some asking or even hinting at make reconciliation with the cause of all this destruction and terrorism; muslim brotherhood… as if nothing happened?

After I heard the words of this daughter… daughter of the officer who martyred on June 10th, 1967 after Sharon ordered the whole battalion be buried alive… I believe we should discuss such file once again… not only what happened in those days of 1967… but the whole file of martyrs who were considered dead immediately during the incidents or who were described as missing and later their families severely suffered.

I remember my uncle Abdel-Hakim el-Gammal in 1967 whose eldest son; Fouad Abdel-Hakim el-Gammal was a lieutenant-colonel engineer in the army. I lived what happened to him and his family when he lost his son… he was told that his son was missing and we stayed for long time asking and hearing news and tales saying that he and his men are in an area called Al-Maghara … later, we knew he was martyred… after years of considering him missing… leaving a wife and three kids behind… meanwhile, those who accumulated millions after October, 1973 victory are cooperating with the Zionist enemy in every field.

First, I would like to salute the president and the armed forces for remembering and honoring those who martyred five decades ago… second, I ask for the same thing this daughter of that great martyr asked for… that we shall not wait until another 50 years pass to honor the rest of the martyrs and compensate their families for what they do deserve… as to those who accumulated billions of money out of war, Infitah and also their “strategic experts” who keep giving justifications for their actions, I say: have some decency if you still can!

Then I listened to the mother whose words were wise and more powerful than all cannons… in part, she directed her words to the young generations saying they should know the nature and essence of studying in the military academies and later belonging to those who work in the army and police… they should know what discipline, commitment and solemn behaviour are… they should know how to persist on getting educated and increasing their experiences… and that they should know what it means to belong to your country and sacrifice your life for it.

That was not a ceremonial celebration… it was a demonstration of national dignity and human grace feeling as if the souls of those who martyred were present there with them.

Finally, I would like to ask the supervisors of Al Ahram mail to tell us about what happened to the donations given for a certain case; that is the orphaned daughters of the martyred driver who martyred along with the judges in Sinai… I and others were waiting to know what happened… however, months passed and it is time to ask… in such regard, there are a lot of details to be told.

Translated into English by: Dalia Elnaggar


This article was published in Al Ahram newspaper on March 30, 2017.

To see the original article, go to:


#alahram #ahmed_elgammal #Egypt #martyrs

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