The last time I sat down to eat with Plestia Alaqad, we were interrupted by diners from three different tables in the restaurant asking if they could take selfies with her.
uncertain
they → sit → her
This is not how Palestinian refugees are normally received.
asserted
refugees → receive → ?
But then most Palestinian refugees don’t have millions of followers on Instagram.
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refugees → have → Instagram
“I’m super-grateful for people’s love and support,” she tells me, “and I’m glad using my platform I was able to raise awareness about what’s happening in Palestine and show the world Gaza through my eyes.
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what → ’m → eyes
Yet sometimes I feel misunderstood.
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I → feel → ?
“I met one person who said something she thought was a compliment: ‘I only followed what’s happening in Gaza when you were there, once you made it out and were safe I stopped following the news’.
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I → meet → news
“I was there reporting about a real-time genocide happening to my people.
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I → report → people
I’m not an actress starring in a drama series that when they drop me from season two you stop watching.
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you → ’m → season
The 45 days of reporting to which Alaqad refers began after Hamas’ October 7, 2023, attack on Israel in which about 1200 people were killed and 251 hostages taken.
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hostages → refer → which
Her Gaza reporting ended with her family’s flight to Egypt and ultimately Melbourne in late 2023, and is documented in her book The Eyes of Gaza, published at a time when Gaza was front-page news around the world.
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Gaza → end → world
How does it feel to know Gazans are still being killed while much of the media caravan has moved on?
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much → feel → caravan
“We live in a trend-driven world, whether we like it or not,” she says.
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she → live → it
“Even people getting killed is a trend …
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people → kill → ?
I think it’s Israel’s tactic to make the genocide last long enough so people would feel desensitised.
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people → think → ?
But media plays a role by choosing what they want to show.
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they → play → what
“Unfortunately, a lot is happening in the world at the same time … something more extreme [than being killed] needs to happen to us for the world to keep their attention on Palestine.”
(In September last year a United Nations Commission of Inquiry found Israel had committed genocide in Gaza.
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Israel → happen → Gaza
Israel called the assessment “scandalous” and “fake”.
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Israel → call → assessment
The International Court of Justice is yet to rule on a case brought by South Africa that alleged Israel had committed genocide in Gaza.)
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Israel → rule → Gaza
Alaqad cites an incident during Israel’s 2014 bombardment of Gaza in which four children from the Bakr family were killed while playing on the beach.
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children → cite → beach
It wouldn’t be news in 2026, she says.
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she → say → 2026
It was witnessed by multiple international journalists, many of them staying at the nearby Deira Hotel to cover the conflict, including Pulitzer-winning New York Times photographer Tyler Hicks.
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many → witness → Hicks
(Israeli authorities declared it a “tragic accident” and found no one culpable.)
In the current conflict, foreign media have been denied access to Gaza and the burden of bearing witness
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burden → declare → Gaza
has fallen on Palestinian journalists like Alaqad, hundreds of whom have paid with their lives to bring the world images and reportage.
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hundreds → fall → images
I ask her what she says to people who question whether those slain are really journalists – an issue that resurfaced in July when the international Committee to Protect Journalists revised a number of cases in its Gaza death toll – and when there is debate here about whether Gazan refugees like her family are adequately screened before entering Australia.
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refugees → ask → Australia
“People see you as a journalist once your political views are aligned with theirs,” she says.
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she → see → theirs
“They’re not judging it based on whether he or she studied journalism.”
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he → judge → journalism
Alaqad recalls being linked to Hamas without any evidence by the Jerusalem Post newspaper while she was reporting from Gaza, something she dismissed but which alarmed her family when the article circulated in Arabic.
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article → recall → Arabic
Such attempts to link journalists to the Islamist movement are feared by Gazans as a prelude to assassination by Israel’s military.
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attempts → link → military
When it comes to screening, travelling on a Palestinian Authority passport has taught Alaqad – as she put it in her book – that “the world is big, yet there’s no space for me in it”.
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world → come → it
“The world is afraid of you as a refugee … but at the same time they’re not afraid of the genocide that creates refugees in the first place.”
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that → ’re → place
“Whenever I see privileged people on TikTok choosing to go somewhere new to start fresh, everyone online will be praising them … ‘you’re so adventurous girl, good job!’.
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you → see → them
But when a Palestinian is forcibly displaced and leaves their country for obvious safety reasons, that’s not seen as brave.
“Why do we always have to prove to the world that we’re human enough, that I am a journalist enough?” she asks.
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she → displace → world
We are not in danger of being interrupted by Plestia fans today.
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We → interrupt → fans
It is the last set breakfast of the winter for Rahaf Al Khatib, who has closed her café Beit Siti for a couple of months to relaunch with a spring menu and a community space.
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who → close → menu
Though one passing family, seeing us eating inside, try the door and have to be politely let down.
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us → pass → door
Who can blame them?
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Who → blame → them
Because my family are from Jerusalem, or al-Quds (“the holy”) in Arabic, I want to say that the qudsiyeh – hummus topped with stewed fava beans – is my favourite, but the galayet bandoora, a simple but luscious dish of sautéed tomatoes, is even better.
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bandoora → want → tomatoes
The brined goat’s cheese and stuffed baby eggplants spark an animated conversation about sourcing and preparation between Plestia and Rahaf, two Palestinians down under.
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cheese → brine → Plestia
Alaqad has been back in Melbourne visiting family and is set to return to Beirut to resume her studies.
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Alaqad → visit → studies
She won the scholarship named after slain Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh to study at the American University of Beirut in 2024.
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She → win → 2024
…and 49 more, not listed.
The Aporia
