In the war-torn remains of Gaza, where silence is shattered by airstrikes and dreams are buried beneath the rubble, a Palestinian scholar chose to defy despair. Dr Mahmoud Al-Sheikh Ahmad, displaced and surrounded by ruins in Khan Younis, stood not in a lecture hall, but in a makeshift clinic, defending his PhD thesis under the thunder of Israeli bombs.

His research, begun five years ago at the University of Sousse in Tunisia, explored the political role of Palestinian families during the British Mandate. But it became far more than academic inquiry, it turned into an act of resistance. His home was destroyed, yet his determination remained unshaken. Between power cuts, limited internet, and relentless trauma, he wrote, revised, and documented, preserving Palestinian memory in a world bent on erasing it.

When the hospital scheduled to host his defence was bombed, the event was moved to a nearby clinic. There, amid flickering lights and distant shelling, he presented his findings, not just to a committee, but to a world that often refuses to listen. His voice, steady and resolute, echoed the will of a people who have long used knowledge as a form of survival.

Dr Mahmoud’s story is one among thousands silenced by war. Since October 2023, more than 16,000 Palestinian students have been killed, and Gaza’s education system lies in ruins. But as long as scholars like Mahmoud stand, Gaza’s story will be written, not by those who bomb schools, but by those who risk everything to keep learning alive.