Dr. Yousef Aljamal
COMMUNITY News:
The second featured speaker of the Free Palestine Summer Series is Dr. Yousef Aljamal, a Palestinian refugee, writer, and activist who serves as the Gaza Coordinator for the Palestine Activism Program with the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC). He will speak at 7 p.m., Wednesday, Sept. 10 at SALA, following a viewing of the Promised Land Museum from 5–7 p.m.
Dr. Aljamal’s presentation comes in the shadow of a devastating personal loss. Aug. 7, an Israeli airstrike killed his sister Somaiya, her husband Anas, and two of their daughters, Hoor and Sham. Only Noor, 14, survived. She sustained injuries and has undergone surgeries to repair fractures.
In his recent writing about the tragedy, Dr. Aljamal shared the heartbreaking details of Noor’s survival: “While the family slept, an Israeli missile targeted their room, killing everyone except Noor, who had been sleeping a few meters away from her parents’ bed. Noor’s body flew through the air with her mattress and hit the bathroom wall. She survived with multiple fractures in her arm.”
He also reflected on the dreams that his sister carried into her final days: “In our last message exchange, she wrote, ‘We are still in this world, hoping to get some good news.’ Instead, Aug. 7, I woke up to the tragic news of her murder and that of her entire family.”
Organizers of the Free Palestine Summer Series emphasize that Dr. Aljamal’s talk is not just an opportunity to learn, but also a chance to extend solidarity. Donations will be collected to help cover Noor’s medical expenses as she continues to recover in Gaza.
“This is more than a lecture,” organizers said. “It is an invitation to hear the human side of Gaza’s story — stories of family, love, loss, and survival that rarely reach American audiences. We hope the community will come to listen and also to support Noor.”
In addition to his public speaking and articles, Dr. Aljamal is the co-author of several books and has written widely on life under occupation. His most recent book, Displaced In Gaza: Stories of the Gaza Genocide, was published Sept. 2, 2025 by Haymarket Books. The collection documents harrowing testimonies from families in Gaza, weaving together firsthand accounts of displacement, loss, survival, and resilience during the ongoing siege and bombardment. The book has been praised for amplifying voices that are too often silenced.
Readers can purchase the book online at Haymarket Books, and 10 copies will be available for purchase at the Free Palestine Summer Series events. Organizers encourage attendees to buy the book to both support Dr. Aljamal’s work and to engage more deeply with the human stories of Gaza. Haymarket Books will donate the proceeds from Displaced In Gaza to the Palestinian organization We Are Not Numbers.
Dr. Aljamal’s talk will weave together scholarship and lived experience, offering Los Alamos residents the opportunity to hear a first-hand account of resilience in the face of devastating violence under Israeli military occupation and genocide.
For the full text of Dr. Aljamal’s article, “On grief and being the only survivor in your family in Gaza,” visit the American Friends Service Committee website: Read here.
All Free Palestine Summer Series events are free and open to the public. We look forward to welcoming our community into these conversations and especially into action to save Palestinian lives now, not just mourn them.