For two years now, Israel has been turning Gaza into ruins in attacks which are decimating the population. Whilst many argued (and still argue) that this is part of Israel’s ‘defence’ following Hamas’s attack on 7 October 2023, the widespread destruction and mass civilian casualties have demonstrated to the world that Israel is committing genocide.
Palestinian photographer Belal Khaled, in his Hands Tell Stories, represents both the pain and the endurance of those living through this horror.
Khaled embarked on his project after his home was bombed and reduced to rubble. He was living in a tent by Nasser Hospital’s morgue, which had reached full capacity. As a result, bodies were mounting up outside, next to where Khaled and many others were taking shelter.
Using the emotive language of the human hand, Khaled represents intimately and viscerally individuals’ experiences of the collective devastation in Gaza.
One image shows dozens of hands collectively lifting a concrete block to rescue a mother and child trapped under the rubble of their home. In another, two hands, one belonging to a civil defence worker, the other to a girl he is pulling from the wreckage, grasp each other. These are moments of survival, hope and resilience amidst the unimaginable destruction.
There are photos of hands distributing food and water to other hands which reach out in desperation. Khaled records the excruciating hunger and thirst felt by those in Gaza, which is suffering a man-made famine due to Israel’s blockade of humanitarian aid. Over 450 Palestinians have now died by starvation.
Khaled also captures 10-year-old Rowa with her bandaged wrist. “After today, I will not be able to comb my hair with my hand,” the caption reads. Other photos show the motionless hands in the Nasser Hospital morgue – these are individuals whose lives have been tragically lost because of Israel’s ruthless violence. Since 7 October 2023, over 67,000 Palestinians have been killed, a figure which does not account for the thousands who are buried under the rubble.
Khaled’s series also features a photo of Wael Al-Dahdoh, an Al-Jazeera correspondent, whose hand was injured in an attack which killed his colleague, Samer Abu Daqa. Israel has killed at least 248 journalists in what are clearly targeted attacks. Khaled discussed this in an interview, saying “many of my colleagues have been killed. Why? Because they are carrying a camera and delivering the truth to the world.”
One of Khaled’s most haunting images is of a father gripping onto the foot of his child who has been killed. The father’s hand clings to his son tenderly, capturing the love and loss which words cannot express.
The hands in Khaled’s photos will forever carry with them the pain that many in the world have ignored and even silenced. The series presses viewers to ask themselves: why, as those in Gaza reach out their hands in desperation, is humanity not there to embrace it?
This absent hand too has a voice, and its paralysis is complicit in the genocide.
“Hands Tell Stories” is currently on display at V&A South Kensington, London as part of the Prix Pictet – 2025 Exhibition. To some of Khaled’s images, visit https://prix.pictet.com/cycles/storm/belal-khaled
“Palestine Flag State Library of Victoria” by John Englart (Takver) is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.