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30 Seconds from Gaza: Diary of Genocide
Devastating cartoons from acclaimed Palestinian political cartoonist that convey the outrage and scope of the genocide in Gaza.
Mohammad Sabaaneh is an acclaimed Palestinian political cartoonist who has gained worldwide attention for his insightful and provocative linocut artwork, which sheds light on the reality of Palestinian life under occupation. His striking black-white-and-gray cartoons bring attention to the horrors of the Israeli assaults and atrocities in Gaza and open people’s eyes to the suffering Palestinians endure under Israel’s brutal settler colonialism and its system of apartheid.
After his social media accounts were shadow banned and taken down, resulting in the loss of 15 years worth of content, Sabaaneh started questioning the fate of the thousands of videos and pictures of Gaza that can be erased in a second—the commemoration of its historical importance and the importance of documenting what is happening on the ground. The fate of Gaza’s story and history is in the hands of a few corporations intent on hiding the crimes committed against the people of Gaza.
Capturing and drawing scenes from videos posted on social media was a decision Sabaaneh made as a way to archive moments and information that are expected to be banned and erased later. From the genocide in Gaza to the atrocities in the West Bank, Sabaaneh’s political cartoons portray a world in which injustice is unending, but so is the resilience of the Palestinian people. 30 Seconds from Gaza: Diary of Genocide is an artistic triumph and a powerful testament to Palestinian sumud (steadfastness). It is proof of art’s capacity to make visible what oppressors want the world to forget.
In the words of Mohammad Sabaaneh:
“30 seconds. 30-second peek through videos from the heart of Gaza to social media platforms. 30 seconds of people’s lives in Gaza; a small window showcasing the atrocities and hell Palestinians in Gaza are living in. 30 seconds of people’s lives, of people like us. Humans, nothing less... Watching the full scene unfold is gut wrenching, scenes that not many people can watch. Sometimes, we get the ‘sensitive content’ warning before the video begins... Can you imagine how the ones living those 30 seconds feel? Capturing and drawing scenes from these videos was a decision I made as a way to archive moments and information that are expected to be banned later. It allows me to showcase what is happening on the ground, showcasing the crimes committed against the people of Gaza ... The reasoning behind using Indian drawing ink is 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.”
Mohammad Sabaaneh is an acclaimed Palestinian political cartoonist who has gained worldwide attention for his insightful and provocative linocut artwork, which sheds light on the reality of Palestinian life under occupation. His striking black-white-and-gray cartoons bring attention to the horrors of the Israeli assaults and atrocities in Gaza and open people’s eyes to the suffering Palestinians endure under Israel’s brutal settler colonialism and its system of apartheid.
After his social media accounts were shadow banned and taken down, resulting in the loss of 15 years worth of content, Sabaaneh started questioning the fate of the thousands of videos and pictures of Gaza that can be erased in a second—the commemoration of its historical importance and the importance of documenting what is happening on the ground. The fate of Gaza’s story and history is in the hands of a few corporations intent on hiding the crimes committed against the people of Gaza.
Capturing and drawing scenes from videos posted on social media was a decision Sabaaneh made as a way to archive moments and information that are expected to be banned and erased later. From the genocide in Gaza to the atrocities in the West Bank, Sabaaneh’s political cartoons portray a world in which injustice is unending, but so is the resilience of the Palestinian people. 30 Seconds from Gaza: Diary of Genocide is an artistic triumph and a powerful testament to Palestinian sumud (steadfastness). It is proof of art’s capacity to make visible what oppressors want the world to forget.
In the words of Mohammad Sabaaneh:
“30 seconds. 30-second peek through videos from the heart of Gaza to social media platforms. 30 seconds of people’s lives in Gaza; a small window showcasing the atrocities and hell Palestinians in Gaza are living in. 30 seconds of people’s lives, of people like us. Humans, nothing less... Watching the full scene unfold is gut wrenching, scenes that not many people can watch. Sometimes, we get the ‘sensitive content’ warning before the video begins... Can you imagine how the ones living those 30 seconds feel? Capturing and drawing scenes from these videos was a decision I made as a way to archive moments and information that are expected to be banned later. It allows me to showcase what is happening on the ground, showcasing the crimes committed against the people of Gaza ... The reasoning behind using Indian drawing ink is 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.”
- GenresGraphic NovelsNonfiction
170 pages, Paperback
First published October 7, 2024
7 people are currently reading
93 people want to read
About the author
Mohammad Sabaaneh
10 books23 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 - 16 of 16 reviews
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.
Read
September 6, 2025So horrifying and sickening and heartbreaking and disturbing and awful awful awful awful
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.
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.
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!
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews