we are not numbers

emerging writers from Palestine tell their stories and advocate for their human rights

Hend Salama Abo Helow

  • Gaza Strip

Hend Salama Abo Helow is a medical student at Al-Azhar University of Gaza (AUG). She is a dedicated researcher and has served as an ambassador for UNWRA. Her volunteer experiences includes work with Save the Children and the Palestinian Center for Democracy and Conflict Resolution. She is passionate about international law and human rights, loves calligraphy, and asserts that family is her first priority in life.

She believes in embracing the challenges in life and takes as her motto: “If you aim, aim at the stars. So, if you miss, you land on the moon.”

Current as of June 2024

Woman in white doctor's coat

my work

Bombs shook the olive trees as we harvested — but we kept harvesting.
My nieces’ superpowers are their unbreakable spirits, which comfort and inspire me and keep me going.
Omar Fares Abu Shawish was one of the first civilians killed on Oct. 7, struck as he jogged along the Nuseirat beach.
The devastations of unending war cannot extinguish a Gazan’s desire to ‘pave the stepping stones for my future.’