Gaza is not the most beautiful city.
Its shore is not bluer than the shores of Arab cities.
Its oranges are not the most beautiful in the Mediterranean basin.
Gaza is not the richest city.
It is not the most elegant or the biggest, but it equals the history of an entire homeland
Because it is more ugly, impoverished, miserable, and vicious in the eyes of enemies.
Because it is the most capable, among us, of disturbing the enemy’s mood and his comfort,
Because it is his nightmare,
Because it is mined oranges, children without a childhood, old men without old age,
And women without desires,
Because of all this it is the most beautiful, the purest and richest among us
And the one most worthy of love...
— Mahmoud Darwish, excerpt from 'Silence for Gaza'
With thanks to Linda Quiquivix.