Hanzala, the 10-year-old Palestinian child,
Born from the mind of Naji al-Ali, the Palestinian cartoonist;
A Hanzala who is neither beautiful nor smartly dressed!
A stubborn, persistent, and barefoot boy,
With slumped shoulders and hands clasped behind his back!
He has vowed not to shake hands with just anyone!
He walks with determination! On the path of freedom and liberty!
Do not underestimate him… After a short while,
He appeared so powerful that his enemy was forced to assassinate Naji al-Ali in London in
1987!
How much impact can a cultural product have?!
How much can it wound the enemy that they lose their tolerance for this work?!
In truth, the problem of global arrogance is not merely with political systems of resistance!
Rather, it is in fear of the resistance of this Palestinian human being. Otherwise, what do infants
have to do with politics! Their problem is with “liberty,” and liberty is the essence of “humanity”!
They kill “humans”; their problem is with “humanity”… as God says: “whoever kills a soul
unless for a soul or for corruption [done] in the land – it is as if he had slain mankind
entirely.” (Quran, Surah Al-Ma’idah, Verse 32)
For us, Hanzala is more than a cultural-artistic product; he is a tool for struggle and
confrontation against the enemy.
It is true that Naji al-Ali was just a cartoonist and a producer of cultural products, but from the
heart of his creations, Hanzalas were born; Hanzalas who steadfastly resist like men in the field
of battle in Gaza, and on the other hand, other Hanzalas in Western countries are fighting
against the system of domination on the streets and in renowned universities… They pay a
price, but they do not surrender, and they raise the cry of resistance and liberty in the face of
global arrogance, restoring the status of humanity to its rightful place… “And whoever saves
one – it is as if he had saved mankind entirely.” (Quran, Surah Al-Ma’idah, Verse 32)
