'If I die...': Gaza photojournalist Fatima Hassouna killed in airstrike — Her final wish

Fatima Hassouna, a 25-year-old Gaza photojournalist, has spent a year and a half capturing the atrocities of war. She documented airstrikes, the demolition of her home, and the devastating loss of 10 relatives.

Despite the risk, Hassouna stood firm in recording the Gaza story in pictures. Sheknew death was always around her but was eager to have her tale spread far and wide.

"If I die, I want a loud death," she once wrote on social media. "I don’t want to be just breaking news, or a number in a group. I want a death that the world will hear, an impact that will remain through time, and a timeless image that cannot be buried by time or place."

That wish tragically came true on Wednesday when an Israeli airstrike hit her home in northern Gaza, days before her wedding. Fatima and ten of her family members, including her pregnant sister, were killed in the blast.

According to the Gaza health ministry, more than 51,000 people have been killed since the conflict began after the October 7 attack. Women and children account for over half of the victims. After the collapse of the March ceasefire, Israel intensified airstrikes, including a Friday strike that resulted in the death of at least 30 people.

The Israeli military claimed the strike was aimed at a Hamas member who took part in attacks on Israeli soldiers and civilians.

Just 24 hours before her death, an announcement was made that a documentary about Fatima Hassouna's life in Gaza during the Israeli attack will premiere at a French independent film festival that was being staged alongside Cannes.

The Cannes Acid film festival, which will screen the documentary, shared a heartfelt tribute: "Her smile was as magical as her tenacity. Bearing witness, photographing Gaza, distributing food despite the bombs, mourning and hunger. We feared for her."

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