Refaat Alareer (1979-2023) was a prominent Palestinian poet, professor, and activist born and raised in the Gaza Strip. He graduated in English from the Islamic University of Gaza, earned a MA in Comparative Literature from University College London, and a PhD in English Literature from the University Putra Malaysia.
Alareer taught English literature and creative writing for over fifteen years at the Islamic University of Gaza, which was leveled by Israeli bombardments in 2023. Alareer co-founded the organization We Are Not Numbers, which pairs young writers in Gaza with experienced English-language writing mentors around the world to foster Palestinian self-determination through literature. In this spirit, and to educate the world about Palestine, he edited two volumes of his student’s writings: Gaza Writes Back (2013) and Gaza Unsilenced (2014).
On December 6, 2023, after weeks of death threats, Refaat Alareer was killed by a targeted Israeli airstrike in his sister’s home in Northern Gaza. His brother, sister, and four of his nephews were killed in the same airstrike. “If I Must Die,” one of Alareer’s earliest poems, has been widely circulated following his murder and has become an anthem and the piece through which Refaat Alareer is remembered around the world.
Andaleeb Cartonera 