The Palestinian Center for Prisoners Advocacy praised the release of the book Survivors of the Darkness by Palestinian journalist and writer Wesam Afifa. The book documents, through living testimony, the experience of the Palestinian prisoner Osama inside Israeli prisons during two years of the genocidal war on the Gaza Strip. The Center considered this work a qualitative and rich addition to the Palestinian library, and a pioneering contribution to supporting the legacy of the prisoners’ movement and enriching Palestinian prison literature.
The Center valued the documentary and humanitarian effort presented in the book, as it includes testimonies and vivid scenes that capture the details of one of the most dangerous and harshest experiences endured by the Palestinian prisoners’ movement, amid the ongoing Israeli war and the unprecedented escalation of repression and abuse against prisoners that accompanied it.
The Center affirmed that Survivors of the Darkness sheds light on an exceptional stage in the history of Israeli prisons and documents the suffering of prisoners during the genocidal war, including scenes of pain, steadfastness, and human resistance. This makes it an important reference for future generations and a historical record of a period rarely matched in the history of the prisoners’ movement.
The Center stated that the importance of this work is not limited to its literary and humanitarian value, but goes beyond that to constitute a document of condemnation against the occupation and conclusive evidence of the brutality of the Israeli jailer, and of the policies of repression, humiliation, and violations practiced against Palestinian prisoners during the years of war.
The Palestinian Center for Prisoners Advocacy called on writers, authors, intellectuals, and freed prisoners to document the experiences and suffering of prisoners and to preserve this national and humanitarian legacy, especially as what prisoners witnessed inside Israeli prisons during the genocidal war represents an exceptional experience that must be documented and passed on to future generations.
The Center stressed that the Palestinian narrative, foremost among it the prisoners’ narrative, represents one of the most important tools for confronting attempts at falsification and erasure. It affirmed that documenting living testimonies preserves the truth and strengthens its presence in global human consciousness.
The Center concluded its statement by affirming that Survivors of the Darkness is not merely a literary work, but a profound human testimony, a cry in the face of injustice, and a message of loyalty to the prisoners who endured one of the harshest experiences in the history of the Palestinian prisoners’ movement.
