Plestia Alaqad on finding her voice, leaving Gaza, and humanising Palestine

How do you humanise people facing unimaginable odds?

That was the task Plestia Alaqad gave herself when she first put on her press vest on 7 October. Freshly graduated from journalism school and dreaming of a bright future, she suddenly found herself in the middle of a war zone, with the eyes of the world watching.

Armed with her phone and internet access, she began documenting the lives of her family and the people around her - finding stories of hope and resilience amid the rubble.

Overnight, she became one of the most followed people on the internet, as each day, millions tuned in to watch the war unfold through her eyes. It was a kind of journalism we hadn’t witnessed before, immediate, empathetic, and told through the voices of young Palestinians facing the unimaginable.

Click on the link below to watch this episode of The Big Picture Podcast, where Mohamed Hassan meets with Plestia in Melbourne, the Australian city where she and her family fled after leaving Gaza, reluctant and tearful, praying for the day they would return but knowing that day may not come.

Plestia Alaqad on finding her voice, leaving Gaza, and humanising Palestine