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30 secondes à Gaza
« 30 secondes. C’est le temps que durent les vidéos postées depuis Gaza sur les réseaux sociaux… Trente secondes pour un bref aperçu de l’enfer que vivent des êtres ni plus ni moins humains que nous… »
De Ramallah, où il vit, Mohammad Sabaaneh a entrepris de documenter la tragédie que vivent les Gazaouis depuis octobre 2023 à travers des dessins qui reproduisent les scènes des vidéos postées depuis Gaza. Il veut par là sauvegarder les traces de ce qui est en train de se passer, car ces images disparaissent les unes après les autres des réseaux sociaux, censurées par les grandes plateformes d’Internet.
Ce livre recueille quatre-vingt-douze dessins réalisés à l’encre de Chine sur papier parce que, comme le dit l’auteur, « aucune solution liquide ne peut l’effacer. Elle est indélébile comme l’est le sang qui coule dans les rues de Gaza, dans ses hôpitaux et sur les visages de ses enfants que rien, jamais, ne pourra effacer de nos mémoires ».
Le livre est introduit par une préface de l’historien israélien Ilan Pappé et de l’historienne palestinienne Nadia Naser-Najjab et paraît en même temps en Italie et en Espagne grâce à la complicité des éditions Mesogea et de la Fondation Al Fanar.
LES BÉNÉFICES DU LIVRES SERONT DÉDIÉS À LA POPULATION DE GAZA
De Ramallah, où il vit, Mohammad Sabaaneh a entrepris de documenter la tragédie que vivent les Gazaouis depuis octobre 2023 à travers des dessins qui reproduisent les scènes des vidéos postées depuis Gaza. Il veut par là sauvegarder les traces de ce qui est en train de se passer, car ces images disparaissent les unes après les autres des réseaux sociaux, censurées par les grandes plateformes d’Internet.
Ce livre recueille quatre-vingt-douze dessins réalisés à l’encre de Chine sur papier parce que, comme le dit l’auteur, « aucune solution liquide ne peut l’effacer. Elle est indélébile comme l’est le sang qui coule dans les rues de Gaza, dans ses hôpitaux et sur les visages de ses enfants que rien, jamais, ne pourra effacer de nos mémoires ».
Le livre est introduit par une préface de l’historien israélien Ilan Pappé et de l’historienne palestinienne Nadia Naser-Najjab et paraît en même temps en Italie et en Espagne grâce à la complicité des éditions Mesogea et de la Fondation Al Fanar.
LES BÉNÉFICES DU LIVRES SERONT DÉDIÉS À LA POPULATION DE GAZA
112 pages, Paperback
First published October 7, 2024
About the author
Mohammad Sabaaneh
11 books24 followersMohammad Sabaaneh is a Palestinian cartoonist.
He is the principal political cartoonist for the Palestinian Authority's daily newspaper, Al-Hayat al-Jadida.
Sabaaneh is a Middle East representative for the Cartoonists Rights Network International and teaches art at the Arab American University of Palestine.
His graphic novel Power Born of Dreams: My Story is Palestine, which tells the autobiographical story of his time as a political prisoner in Israel, received the Palestine Book Award. He currently lives in Ramallah, in the West Bank.
He is the principal political cartoonist for the Palestinian Authority's daily newspaper, Al-Hayat al-Jadida.
Sabaaneh is a Middle East representative for the Cartoonists Rights Network International and teaches art at the Arab American University of Palestine.
His graphic novel Power Born of Dreams: My Story is Palestine, which tells the autobiographical story of his time as a political prisoner in Israel, received the Palestine Book Award. He currently lives in Ramallah, in the West Bank.
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
August 25, 2026
A very important but extremely difficult book to read. The heart-rending, gut-wrenching horrors faced incessantly by the people of Gaza shown through the cubist style powerful illustrations. Some of the illustrations, especially of many children like Hind Rajab choked me up. Very poignant, evocative and powerful graphic book. A must read.
August 10, 2026
This one is powerful. The premise or style is 30 seconds of social media, glimpses that many of us saw play across our screens. The social media censors can't disappear these images. Hind Rajab is the last one, so prepare yourself.
Sabaaneh was inspired by Picasso's cubism and his painting Guernica of the fascist attack on the city. Don't skip the preface and introduction - there is tons of background history there! There are explanations and translations for each india ink drawing too. It all comes together and is perfection.
I hope each American who reads thinks about our ties to the Zionist death machine responsible for what's between these pages and so much more and resists it with every fiber of our being wherever we see it.
Sabaaneh was inspired by Picasso's cubism and his painting Guernica of the fascist attack on the city. Don't skip the preface and introduction - there is tons of background history there! There are explanations and translations for each india ink drawing too. It all comes together and is perfection.
I hope each American who reads thinks about our ties to the Zionist death machine responsible for what's between these pages and so much more and resists it with every fiber of our being wherever we see it.
September 21, 2025
“No substance at all can erase it, resembling the dried-up blood splattered across the roads of Gaza, its hospitals, its children’s faces… never erased, never forgotten.”
I can’t remember the last time a book/piece of art brought me to tears. May we never forget the (ongoing) brutality these people continue to face and the countless lives lost.
I can’t remember the last time a book/piece of art brought me to tears. May we never forget the (ongoing) brutality these people continue to face and the countless lives lost.
May 22, 2026
this is a short book, but it’s anything but easy. these beautiful art pieces are so emotional, so raw and real, that this book feels incredibly heavy. it is an important read, and i would urge all to give it a look.
April 12, 2026
this was absolutely devastating to read, and essential to experience. ❤️🩹
the longer this gen0c!de goes on, the louder we have to be about stopping it — it has never for a second been okay, and we can’t look away.
the way this art shines a direct light on the realities of what’s happening is wholly gut-wrenching and sickening, sobering in every sense, and horrific to take to heart. and it’s necessary. a must-read, especially for how it shares what the media isn’t.
the longer this gen0c!de goes on, the louder we have to be about stopping it — it has never for a second been okay, and we can’t look away.
the way this art shines a direct light on the realities of what’s happening is wholly gut-wrenching and sickening, sobering in every sense, and horrific to take to heart. and it’s necessary. a must-read, especially for how it shares what the media isn’t.
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September 6, 2025So horrifying and sickening and heartbreaking and disturbing and awful awful awful awful
September 5, 2026
30 Seconds From Gaza by Mohammad Sabaaneh, translated by Nada Hodali, preserves online videos of Palestinians since 2023 as cubist drawings to prevent their total erasure by social media censorship. It is a devastating book, offering up brief looks into the lives and deaths of Palestinians, adults and children alike. It also includes a longer passage for Hind Rajab in the final section. A single image in this book has the power to bring one to tears, and the complete book is nearly unbearable, which is why it is essential reading, for the sake of humanity. If you have a soul, this book will haunt you. It is a must read.
November 13, 2024
come evidenzia il rapporto di 51 pagine “Meta’s Broken Promises: Systemic Censorship of Palestine Content on Instagram and Facebook” di Human Rights Watch, dal 7 ottobre 2023 le voci palestinesi sono sempre più soggette a tentativi di censura discriminatoria. Questi atti di soppressione includono la chiusura dei profili social di utenti, attivisti, giornalisti e artisti, l'eliminazione o la sospensione di post e storie, la difficoltà di seguire o taggare account, l'impossibilità di interagire con post, video o storie, e la limitazione dell'uso di particolari funzionalità, come le live su Instagram o le dirette su Facebook. In molte città si segnalano casi di "shadow banning" e manipolazione dell'algoritmo, dove l’uso di particolari parole può ridurre la visibilità di alcuni contenuti, rendendo più difficile accedere a informazioni scomode o sgradite.
Il quadro attuale è aggravato dal fatto che i giornalisti palestinesi vengono uccisi e l'accesso alla stampa internazionale è spesso negato o consentito solo in aree stabilite dall’IDF. In questo modo, la soppressione della narrativa palestinese favorisce la diffusione di un racconto privilegiato, e le testimonianze dirette vengono lasciate al potere discrezionale di alcune aziende che si occupano di comunicazione digitale.
Mohammad Sabaneh affronta un tema di grande importanza politica e mediatica nella presentazione del suo lavoro. In “30 seconds from Gaza” decide di raccogliere i video diffusi (per la maggior parte eliminati) attraverso le piattaforme social che documentano questi eventi traumatici e di rielaborarli in disegni dallo stile cubista. Il suo lavoro diventa così un archivio visivo della violenza e un modo per preservare e conservare una memoria traumatica.
Come afferma Enzo Traverso, gli anni Ottanta sono stati fondamentali per la democratizzazione della memoria: il diritto alla memoria non fu più esclusivo di una ristretta élite, ma venne esteso a tutti. Si iniziò a promuovere la scrittura della storia popolare, segnando un mutamento significativo nel nostro rapporto con il passato.
L'approccio di Sabaneh, secondo me, è un tipo di narrazione della storia dal basso. Ha costruito una memoria attorno alle storie, alle esperienze e alle vite delle persone comuni che sono state storicamente marginalizzate. Sabaneh analizza la differenza tra i termini "storia con la s minuscola" e "storia con la s maiuscola": da una parte, la storia delle famiglie, dei bambini e delle comunità palestinesi che costruiscono attivamente il proprio passato come mezzo per rivendicare e costruire un'identità collettiva; D'altra parte, la memoria collettiva delle masse è influenzata dalla Storia ufficiale, che spesso presenta solo la visione del mondo delle classi dominanti occidentali.
Questo conflitto e i ricordi condivisi da una comunità, all’interno delle piattaforme mediatiche, sono influenzati dalle dinamiche della lotta di classe. Sempre Traverso afferma che le memorie di eventi traumatici, come le guerre tra nazioni, sono guerre tra ideologie e classi sociali che si battono per le proprie opinioni, piuttosto che semplici conflitti. La memoria collettiva conserva un ricordo indelebile di questi eventi. Tuttavia, questa memoria può essere alterata e reinterpretata per sostenere progetti ideologici.
Il testo di Sabaneh afferma che le comunità marginalizzate, come quella palestinese, possono resistere alla riscrittura della storia.
Il quadro attuale è aggravato dal fatto che i giornalisti palestinesi vengono uccisi e l'accesso alla stampa internazionale è spesso negato o consentito solo in aree stabilite dall’IDF. In questo modo, la soppressione della narrativa palestinese favorisce la diffusione di un racconto privilegiato, e le testimonianze dirette vengono lasciate al potere discrezionale di alcune aziende che si occupano di comunicazione digitale.
Mohammad Sabaneh affronta un tema di grande importanza politica e mediatica nella presentazione del suo lavoro. In “30 seconds from Gaza” decide di raccogliere i video diffusi (per la maggior parte eliminati) attraverso le piattaforme social che documentano questi eventi traumatici e di rielaborarli in disegni dallo stile cubista. Il suo lavoro diventa così un archivio visivo della violenza e un modo per preservare e conservare una memoria traumatica.
Come afferma Enzo Traverso, gli anni Ottanta sono stati fondamentali per la democratizzazione della memoria: il diritto alla memoria non fu più esclusivo di una ristretta élite, ma venne esteso a tutti. Si iniziò a promuovere la scrittura della storia popolare, segnando un mutamento significativo nel nostro rapporto con il passato.
L'approccio di Sabaneh, secondo me, è un tipo di narrazione della storia dal basso. Ha costruito una memoria attorno alle storie, alle esperienze e alle vite delle persone comuni che sono state storicamente marginalizzate. Sabaneh analizza la differenza tra i termini "storia con la s minuscola" e "storia con la s maiuscola": da una parte, la storia delle famiglie, dei bambini e delle comunità palestinesi che costruiscono attivamente il proprio passato come mezzo per rivendicare e costruire un'identità collettiva; D'altra parte, la memoria collettiva delle masse è influenzata dalla Storia ufficiale, che spesso presenta solo la visione del mondo delle classi dominanti occidentali.
Questo conflitto e i ricordi condivisi da una comunità, all’interno delle piattaforme mediatiche, sono influenzati dalle dinamiche della lotta di classe. Sempre Traverso afferma che le memorie di eventi traumatici, come le guerre tra nazioni, sono guerre tra ideologie e classi sociali che si battono per le proprie opinioni, piuttosto che semplici conflitti. La memoria collettiva conserva un ricordo indelebile di questi eventi. Tuttavia, questa memoria può essere alterata e reinterpretata per sostenere progetti ideologici.
Il testo di Sabaneh afferma che le comunità marginalizzate, come quella palestinese, possono resistere alla riscrittura della storia.
March 4, 2026
Graphic images done in permanent black India ink, each one based on a short film clip found online from 10/2023 to the publication date (08/2025), are done in a Cubist style, capturing the painfully jarring, stark, and brutal situation in Gaza during this most recent period of genocide.
Each image tells a devastating story of the horrors faced by Palestinian children and their families; the parent(s) dead, the child(ren) dead, limbs severed, homes destroyed. Each one comes directly from the heart of a unique but unnamed individual, forced to survive knowing their beloved is gone or severely harmed.
It is too much to bear, I broke down in tears after seeing/reading just a few pages, and had to close the book. Anyone with any compassion will surely do the same.
When I recovered from the initial shock, I read the foreword by Illan Pappe, the preface by Nadia Naser-Najjab, and the introduction by the artist Mohammad Sabaaneh. I braced myself, and tried again.
I got through a few more pages, and I'm writing this, so that I can give it back to my friend who is in the middle of it, too, and I will remember to share it, and mention it, and recommend it whenever anyone seems to be in denial about what is happening. I saw some small portion of these videos online - I have been seeing them online or echoing in my mind for the past two years, and IT HARDLY SEEMS BELIEVABLE THAT THIS GENOCIDE IS HAPPENING *RIGHT NOW* WHILE WE ARE SITTING IN THE LIBRARY READING THIS BOOK, and the children here are squabbling, and they are having their snacks, and they are running and laughing.
How can this all be in the same world? How can the United Nations ALLOW the ongoing murder or children and parents? I don't understand. I can't stop crying.
Each image tells a devastating story of the horrors faced by Palestinian children and their families; the parent(s) dead, the child(ren) dead, limbs severed, homes destroyed. Each one comes directly from the heart of a unique but unnamed individual, forced to survive knowing their beloved is gone or severely harmed.
It is too much to bear, I broke down in tears after seeing/reading just a few pages, and had to close the book. Anyone with any compassion will surely do the same.
When I recovered from the initial shock, I read the foreword by Illan Pappe, the preface by Nadia Naser-Najjab, and the introduction by the artist Mohammad Sabaaneh. I braced myself, and tried again.
I got through a few more pages, and I'm writing this, so that I can give it back to my friend who is in the middle of it, too, and I will remember to share it, and mention it, and recommend it whenever anyone seems to be in denial about what is happening. I saw some small portion of these videos online - I have been seeing them online or echoing in my mind for the past two years, and IT HARDLY SEEMS BELIEVABLE THAT THIS GENOCIDE IS HAPPENING *RIGHT NOW* WHILE WE ARE SITTING IN THE LIBRARY READING THIS BOOK, and the children here are squabbling, and they are having their snacks, and they are running and laughing.
How can this all be in the same world? How can the United Nations ALLOW the ongoing murder or children and parents? I don't understand. I can't stop crying.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 12, 2025
A powerful graphic novel from an acclaimed Palestinian political cartoonist that archives often-censored digital footage of the realities in Gaza into enduring works of art.
Mohammad Sabaaneh, a Palestinian artist based in the West Bank, bears witness to genocide in 30 Seconds from Gaza—a graphic reflection that captures the horror of experiencing mass atrocity through 30-second video snippets sent to his phone in real time after October 7th, 2025. Through his stark black, white, and gray linocut cartoons, Sabaaneh transforms fleeting, often-censored digital footage into enduring works of art.
Internationally acclaimed for his bold political commentary, Sabaaneh documents the brutal realities of life under Israeli occupation. His powerful illustrations confront the atrocities in Gaza and the West Bank, exposing the violence of apartheid and settler colonialism while honoring the unwavering resilience of the Palestinian people.
After being shadow-banned on social media, and losing 15 years of content due to censorship, Sabaaneh began drawing from the very footage most at risk of being deleted. Each image in this book is an act of defiance—an effort to preserve a visual history that corporations and occupiers seek to erase.
30 Seconds from Gaza: Diary of Genocide is both a devastating artistic archive and a courageous testament to Palestinian sumud (steadfastness). In a world where injustice is too often silenced, Sabaaneh’s work ensures the truth is seen—and remembered.
Mohammad Sabaaneh, a Palestinian artist based in the West Bank, bears witness to genocide in 30 Seconds from Gaza—a graphic reflection that captures the horror of experiencing mass atrocity through 30-second video snippets sent to his phone in real time after October 7th, 2025. Through his stark black, white, and gray linocut cartoons, Sabaaneh transforms fleeting, often-censored digital footage into enduring works of art.
Internationally acclaimed for his bold political commentary, Sabaaneh documents the brutal realities of life under Israeli occupation. His powerful illustrations confront the atrocities in Gaza and the West Bank, exposing the violence of apartheid and settler colonialism while honoring the unwavering resilience of the Palestinian people.
After being shadow-banned on social media, and losing 15 years of content due to censorship, Sabaaneh began drawing from the very footage most at risk of being deleted. Each image in this book is an act of defiance—an effort to preserve a visual history that corporations and occupiers seek to erase.
30 Seconds from Gaza: Diary of Genocide is both a devastating artistic archive and a courageous testament to Palestinian sumud (steadfastness). In a world where injustice is too often silenced, Sabaaneh’s work ensures the truth is seen—and remembered.
August 20, 2026
Though not quite a follow-up to his 'Power Born of Dreams: My Story is Palestine' (2021), Sabaaneh returns with another urgent dispatch from Gaza.
The "30 seconds" in the title refers to the short videos that the artist had been posting on various social media platforms for over 15 years. These were "shadow banned" when they began to hit much too close to home to the platforms' corporate interests following the events of October 7, 2023, effectively silencing the artist. Undeterred, Sabaaneh recreated several of these posts using his signature Picasso-inspired cubist linocuts rendered in Indian ink to send a heartbreaking message about the ongoing Israeli genocide in Gaza. According to the author, Indian ink was used due to "...its permanence, water cannot erase it. No substance at all can erase it, resembling the dried-up blood splattered across the roads of Gaza, its hospitals, its children's faces...never erased, never forgotten."
The powerful final third of the book tells the horrifying story of five-year old Hind Rajab, who was massacred by an Israeli tank as she was on the phone with a rescue team. If you can get through any of this without shedding tears, you are not human.
The "30 seconds" in the title refers to the short videos that the artist had been posting on various social media platforms for over 15 years. These were "shadow banned" when they began to hit much too close to home to the platforms' corporate interests following the events of October 7, 2023, effectively silencing the artist. Undeterred, Sabaaneh recreated several of these posts using his signature Picasso-inspired cubist linocuts rendered in Indian ink to send a heartbreaking message about the ongoing Israeli genocide in Gaza. According to the author, Indian ink was used due to "...its permanence, water cannot erase it. No substance at all can erase it, resembling the dried-up blood splattered across the roads of Gaza, its hospitals, its children's faces...never erased, never forgotten."
The powerful final third of the book tells the horrifying story of five-year old Hind Rajab, who was massacred by an Israeli tank as she was on the phone with a rescue team. If you can get through any of this without shedding tears, you are not human.
November 10, 2025
"Please tell me she is breathing." October 2, 2023
Poignant, unapologetic, and crushing, 30 Seconds from Gaza: Diary of Genocide is an art gallery showcasing a small portion the suffering the people of Gaza have endured. All of the pieces are directly inspired by quotes from videos that have been censored by online media platforms, giving voice back to the voiceless. I cannot recommend it highly enough.
Poignant, unapologetic, and crushing, 30 Seconds from Gaza: Diary of Genocide is an art gallery showcasing a small portion the suffering the people of Gaza have endured. All of the pieces are directly inspired by quotes from videos that have been censored by online media platforms, giving voice back to the voiceless. I cannot recommend it highly enough.
December 24, 2024
Livre un peu à part puisque très peu de textes, pas de contenu littéraire. Nous sommes en présence d’un « bel » objet, bien que dépeignant les pires atrocités que l’humanité puisse commettre.
Les dessins sont poignants, les rares mots présents en dessous de chaque dessin prennent aux tripes, éveillant un désir de rébellion certain au plus profond de chacun de nous.
Qui je suis pour pas mettre 5 étoiles à cet ouvrage ? Et qui je suis pour « noter » une œuvre pareille ?
Les dessins sont poignants, les rares mots présents en dessous de chaque dessin prennent aux tripes, éveillant un désir de rébellion certain au plus profond de chacun de nous.
Qui je suis pour pas mettre 5 étoiles à cet ouvrage ? Et qui je suis pour « noter » une œuvre pareille ?
January 12, 2025
Gogorra bezain bikaina. Ilan Papperen hitzaurrea dauka testuinguruan jartzeko. Kubismo teknika erabiltzen du idazleak "hondakinetara mugatutako hiri batean suntsitutako etxeen hondarren antzekoa baita", Picassoren Gernika gogoratuz. Alabari erakutsi eta beldurrezko ipuin bat dirudiela esan dit, Gazako haurrek bizi duten eguneroko amets gaiztoa, tamalez.
November 22, 2025
Haunting graphics of the horrors of Gaza.
Why do we kill people for land?
I feel helpless. What can I do? I can understand and sympathize. Not enough.
Who are we? Why are we this way? All the lies we live with. This book shows the truth.
Found it at Elliot Bay Bookstore, Seattle, WA.
Will seek out more of his beautifully tragic imagery and profound sharing.
Thank you Mohammad.
Why do we kill people for land?
I feel helpless. What can I do? I can understand and sympathize. Not enough.
Who are we? Why are we this way? All the lies we live with. This book shows the truth.
Found it at Elliot Bay Bookstore, Seattle, WA.
Will seek out more of his beautifully tragic imagery and profound sharing.
Thank you Mohammad.
January 1, 2026
Picasso's Guernica always reminded me of the carnage of the genocide in Gaza, and in this book the artist brings this connection to life. Using footage seen on social media of horrific atrocities, Sabaaneh illustrates them using special water-resistant ink. This was beautifully and heartbreakingly captured.
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August 27, 2025Immagini che lacerano il cuore , per ricordarci che, in un mondo a colori, a Gaza si vive in bianco e nero.
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November 17, 2025It’s not really something I can give a rating to because it feels wrong. It’s a powerful book and the artwork is masterful.
December 21, 2025
Heart wrenching, like going through an art gallery of terror and distraught 😭. Very powerful read.
Read
January 26, 2026I cried the entire way through this.
January 27, 2026
Quite moving artwork.
February 14, 2026
I wish I could've seen each entry of this collection spread out on a wall - a gallery for this work would be so potent
Document, remember remember remember. Bear witness!
Document, remember remember remember. Bear witness!
April 23, 2026
Powerful and heartbreaking. If you want to know what people are living through in Palestine, take a look at the art and stories.
August 2, 2026
Stark images, and a stark reminder that was is failure. A failure to all of our children, and horrifically so when children are the victims.
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews