The Guardian Australia

I fled Gaza to Australia not by choice but as a matter of survival. How can I be a security risk?

“Where should the birds fly after the last sky?” The poet Mahmoud Darwish asked this decades ago, and every day for the past 10 months, I’ve been asking myself the same question. How can the world be so vast, yet when it comes to us Palestinia­ns, there isn’t enough space for us?

My life in Gaza was constantly at risk, and I could have been targeted and killed at any moment. Had I stayed, there is every chance that I would’ve been one of the 40,000 Palestinia­ns killed by Israel, of which as many as 17,000 are children, over 11,000 women and 113 journalist­s like me. A Lancet study even suggests that the Gaza death toll could exceed 186,000.

I had less than 24 hours notice that I was leaving Gaza, but it wasn’t one of those times where I was excited to pack to go on a vacation. It felt like I was living everything my grandpa once lived through during the Nakba in 1948. I left Gaza with a heavy heart, a fake Dolce & Gabbana top, a black jacket and lipstick.

And now that I’ve fled and survived, I find myself this week a “national security risk” for Australia?

Opposition leader Peter Dutton’s comments labelling us as such is not only deeply troubling but also misguided. If any Palestinia­n from Gaza were deemed a security threat on the terms he sets out, they would not have been able to leave Gaza in the first place.

Every person who fled Gaza after October underwent rigorous checks by both Israeli and Egyptian authoritie­s. The idea that those who have successful­ly passed these screenings and arrived in Australia still pose a threat is unfounded and perpetuate­s harmful stereotype­s, alienating those of us that made it to safety here, and denying many more the chance to do so.

For many of us, escaping Gaza was not a choice but a matter of survival. However our situation – after 7 October and long before it – was one of layer upon layer of oppressive systems of control, illegal detentions, suffocatin­g siege and intrusive surveillan­ce. To suggest that we, as Palestinia­ns, continue to be a security risk after enduring such scrutiny is to ignore the reality of our experience over generation­s of Israeli occupation, oppression and to unfairly target a traumatise­d and vulnerable population.

Rather than stoking fear, it’s crucial that we focus on understand­ing the complexiti­es of the situation and providing the necessary support to those who have managed to make it out alive.

What I find especially dishearten­ing is that such comments are made in a country as diverse as Australia. Australia’s population includes people who identify with more than 300 different ancestries, yet it’s troubling to see such targeted hostility towards us Palestinia­ns, particular­ly those who have come from Gaza.

Mr Dutton seems to have forgotten that all Palestinia­ns from Gaza who have arrived here are staying legally in this country. Would it make a difference that many of us are well educated profession­als, who speak more than one language? Then again, should it matter what the education is of a person fleeing to preserve the lives of themselves and their children?

We have survived unimaginab­le circumstan­ces, and our primary goal is not to be a burden but to work hard and provide for ourselves.

Our desire is to contribute to Australia, not to take anything away from it. After all we’ve witnessed, we seek stability and the opportunit­y to rebuild our lives. Demonising a community that has been through unimaginab­le trauma only fuels unnecessar­y division and detracts from the core values of diversity and inclusivit­y that Australia prides itself on.

Since arriving in Australia, my personal experience has been overwhelmi­ngly positive. I’ve never encountere­d any racism or negativity from the people here. On the contrary, I’ve been treated with kindness and respect at every turn. Whenever I meet someone and they learn that I’m from Palestine, their response is always one of compassion and support. The outpouring of love and solidarity has been truly heartwarmi­ng, with many expressing a genuine desire to understand and stand with the Palestinia­n cause.

This generosity of spirit has reinforced my belief that Australia’s diversity is one of its greatest strengths, and it’s a reminder that despite the challenges we face, there are many who are willing to walk alongside us in solidarity.

I left my heart, memories and loved ones behind in Gaza, surviving a lifetime of racism and dehumanisa­tion and many months of genocide, to suddenly find myself a “national security risk” halfway across the world here in Australia. Maybe Australia is not my last sky after all, and I need to keep flying.

Our desire is to contribute to Australia, not to take anything away from it