\n<\/p>\n
Mahmoud Shurrab\u2019s aim had always been to spread happiness. His social media pages had long been popular in Gaza \u2013 he was known for his witty posts, his comedic skits about daily life, and his acting, appearing in local productions.<\/p>\n
\u201cI adore creativity, whatever it is, and whatever it will be,\u201d was pinned to the top of his Facebook page.<\/p>\n
Israel\u2019s war on Gaza put many of Mahmoud\u2019s dreams on hold, but his videos continued. He smiled throughout them, even cracking jokes \u2013 but the focus was now different: humanitarian aid.<\/p>\n
Mahmoud became a familiar sight in displacement camps, hauling crates of bottled water and cooking oil, distributing baby formula, and helping set up tents for families who had lost everything. He used his social media platforms to rally support from donors abroad.<\/p>\n
And he moved from area to area under bombardment, driven by one conviction: \u201cPeople need me, I can\u2019t stop.\u201d<\/p>\n
On June 21, an Israeli air attack hit the tent where Mahmoud was sheltering in al-Mawasi, a so-called Israeli \u201chumanitarian zone\u201d west of southern Gaza\u2019s Khan Younis. Mahmoud was killed in the strike.<\/p>\n
Mahmoud Shurrab and his daughter Dalal [Courtesy of Lama Shubeir]<\/p>\n
The 32-year-old left behind his wife, Lama Shubeir, and their four-year-old daughter, Dalal. Early in the war, Mahmoud saw an opportunity to send them to safety in Egypt, while he stayed behind to help the people of Gaza.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe [sent us away] to protect his daughter\u2019s life,\u201d Lama told Al Jazeera. \u201cHe was so afraid for her and wanted her to live like any other child in the world, in safety. He wanted Dalal to grow up safely. But I never imagined we\u2019d be apart for a year and a half without seeing him ever again.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mahmoud was born and raised in Khan Younis, where he lost his father, Khamis, at the age of nine. Khamis was known locally for his charity work, which became one of Mahmoud\u2019s passions along with comedy and acting.<\/p>\n
It all stemmed from his desire \u201cto make people happy\u201d, said Lama.<\/p>\n
The couple had first met in 2010 on a recreational trip, before marrying in 2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cMahmoud loved bringing joy to people,\u201d Lama said. \u201cAll he dreamed about was building a happy life with us. People loved him for his simplicity and his willingness to help.\u201d<\/p>\n
It is therefore perhaps not surprising that Mahmoud chose to stay in Gaza when the war broke out, despite the risks.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhenever donors reached out to him \u2026 to support a charitable cause, he never hesitated,\u201d Lama said. \u201cI was always worried about him moving around during the bombing, but he would say: \u2018People need me. I can\u2019t stop.’\u201d<\/p>\n
Once Israel\u2019s war on Gaza started, Mahmoud focused on aid projects, including water distribution [Courtesy of Lama Shubeir]<\/p>\n
His charity work meant he was more than just a celebrity in Khan Younis \u2013 he was part of the community, sharing in its joys and sorrows.<\/p>\n
\u201cMahmoud was kind, tall, and had a beautiful smile,\u201d said Mousa Awad, a 27-year-old, also from Khan Younis. \u201cJust seeing him made us laugh. I saw him in every displacement camp. When we needed drinking water, I called him\u2026 he came the next morning.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe looked exhausted, but always talked about seeing his daughter soon.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mahmoud longed for his daughter Dalal, whom he called every morning and every night if communication lines weren\u2019t cut. He was happy knowing that she had started preschool and swimming lessons \u2013 away from the horrors he was experiencing in Gaza.<\/p>\n
Just two hours before his death, he called, speaking for 50 minutes as he watched Dalal eat breakfast with her mother. He had to end the call to focus on a water distribution campaign he was planning.<\/p>\n
Lama struggles to accept that Mahmoud is gone.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was taken from his daughter and me,\u201d she said. \u201cI spent half my life with him \u2013 through joy and hardship. He loved our daughter so much. He dreamed of seeing her again, of rebuilding Gaza, of starting a new life.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI have no words for the world. I only pray that this war ends.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Mahmoud Shurrab\u2019s aim had always been to spread happiness. His social media pages had long been popular in Gaza \u2013 he was known for his witty posts, his comedic skits about daily life, and his acting, appearing in local productions. \u201cI adore creativity, whatever it is, and whatever it will be,\u201d was pinned to the<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":17698,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[48],"tags":[2512,267,7510,376,5761,1758,337,851,10721],"class_list":{"0":"post-17697","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-politics","8":"tag-comedy","9":"tag-conflict","10":"tag-courage","11":"tag-death","12":"tag-gazas","13":"tag-israelpalestine","14":"tag-life","15":"tag-mahmoud","16":"tag-shurrab"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17697","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=17697"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17697\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/17698"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=17697"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=17697"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=17697"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}