Mosab Abu Toha, who has lately contributed a poem and two essays to The New Yorker, lives with his wife and three children in Gaza. In an essay published here last month, he wrote about Israeli air strikes in his neighborhood. “One idea in particular haunts me, and I cannot push it away,” he wrote. “Will I, too, become a statistic on the news?” Over the weekend, Israeli forces reportedly detained Abu Toha in central Gaza. His whereabouts are now unknown. The New Yorker joins other organizations in calling for his safe return. Read more of his work below.
When the war in Gaza started, my family fled to the Jabalia refugee camp. Then Israel started bombing the camp.
Two days before Israel escalated attacks in the Gaza Strip, my family bought some bread. After we evacuated, I biked home to get it.
