As part of the opening ceremony for the new Ajyal al-Tahrir youth center on Monday, 12 October, the second location of the Palestine International Center in Bourj al-Barajneh camp in Beirut, Lebanon, youth paid tribute to the martyred journalist, Saleh al-Jaafarawi, who was killed one year before in Gaza.

Saleh Jaafarawi was followed by millions of people around the world, as he carried the voices, the pain, the suffering and the struggle of his people in Gaza via all forms of social media and reporting. He was subjected to relentless Zionist smear campaigns and attacks.

He was also a dedicated table tennis player who represented Palestine in the World Championships previously. He was martyred at the age of 27, a representative voice of Palestinian youth bringing truth to the world and targeted for the clarity of his vision. He came to prominence during the Great March of Return in 2018, when he was injured several times as occupation soldiers fired on the mass popular marches.

He was martyred one day before his beloved brother, Naji, was released from an occupation prison as part of the Toufan al-Ahrar exchange.

Saleh left behind the following last message:

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds, Who said: “And do not think of those who are killed in the way of Allah as dead. Rather, they are alive with their Lord, receiving provision.”

I am Saleh.
I leave this will, not as a farewell, but as a continuation of a path I have chosen with certainty.

Allah knows that I have exerted every effort and strength I possess to be a support and a voice for my people. I have lived through pain and oppression in all its details, tasted the agony and the loss of loved ones time and again, and yet I never hesitated for a single day to convey the truth as it is—the truth that will remain a testament against all who faltered and remained silent, and also an honor for all who supported, stood by, and championed the most noble, honorable, and dignified people: the people of Gaza.

If I am martyred, know that I have not departed…
I am now in Paradise, with my companions who preceded me;
with Anas, Ismail, and all the loved ones who remained true to their covenant with Allah.

I urge you to remember me in your prayers, and to continue the journey after me.
Remember me with ongoing charity, and mention me whenever you hear the call to prayer or see the light piercing through the night of Gaza.

I urge you to uphold the resistance…
The path we have walked, and the approach we have believed in.
We have known no other path for ourselves, nor found meaning in life except in steadfastness upon it.

I urge you to care for my father… my beloved, my role model, in whom I saw myself and who saw himself in me. You who stood by me through the trials of war with all it entailed… I ask Allah that we meet in the gardens of Paradise, and that you are pleased with me, O crown of my head.

I urge you to care for my brother, my teacher, and my companion on this journey, Naji.
O Naji… I have preceded you to Allah before you were released from prison.
Know that this is a fate written by Allah,
and that my longing for you resides within me.
I wished to see you, to embrace you, to meet you,
but Allah’s promise is true, and our meeting in Paradise is closer than you think.

I urge you to care for my mother…
O mother, life without you is nothing.
You were the ceaseless prayer, the wish that never dies.
I prayed to Allah to heal you and grant you well-being,
and how I dreamed of seeing you travel for treatment and return smiling.

I urge you to care for my brothers and sisters.
My aim is to please Allah and then to please you.
I ask Allah to make you happy and to make your lives as pure as your tender hearts, which I always tried to be a source of joy for.

I always said:
Let not the word fall, nor the image fade.
The word is a trust, and the image is a message.
Carry them to the world as we have carried them.

Do not think that my martyrdom is the end,
but rather the beginning of a long journey toward freedom.
I am a messenger of a message I wanted to reach the world—to the world that closes its eyes, and to those who remain silent about the truth.
And if you hear of my passing, do not weep for me.
I have long wished for this moment and asked Allah to grant it to me.
All praise is due to Allah, Who chose me for what I love.

To all those who wronged me in my life with insults or false slander, I say to you: Here I am, departing to Allah as a martyr, by His permission, and with Allah, all disputes will be settled.

I urge you to care for Palestine…
for Al-Aqsa Mosque…
It was my wish to reach its courtyard, to pray in it, to touch its soil.
If I do not reach it in this world,
I ask Allah to gather us all there in the gardens of eternity.