Adroddiad/Report – Gan Hedd Goch

The 11th of August saw celebrations in Cardiff and Gaza for the 24th birthday of Palestinian political science student, and now published poet, Yahya Al Hamarna. Yahya has now spent his 2nd birthday living through the genocidal slaughter of the IOF (Israeli Occupation Forces) as they attack and occupy Gaza – his experiences led him to pen the powerful poem ‘When I Survive’, which has been read out across the world in front of thousands of people, including at the event at Jacob’s Rooftop Bar on 11th August.

This poem inspired Welsh musicians and activists to collaborate on an album, released in December 2024, to raise funds directly for Yahya and another Palestinian (Yousef Abdellatif) who have been displaced from their homes in Gaza. The album, featuring acts such as Lambrini Girls, Charlotte Church & Dafydd Iwan, was organised to directly intervene and help ensure the safety and wellbeing of these two Palestinians and their families. 

“‘When I Survive’ is a musical compilation and project necessitated by over 400 days of genocide in Gaza. As winter arrives for a second time and as famine sets in, our Palestinian brothers and sisters need our support more than ever.” – from the website

Rooftop Poetry

At a rooftop café in Cardiff, Yahya joined a birthday celebration and launch party for his new book of poetry, ‘My Voice Cannot Be Bombed’. He joined the event by video link, a few attempts were needed, a reminder of the tenuous nature of our connection with Gaza. The crowd sang happy birthday in Arabic, Welsh and English, and he spoke about his poetry, all that he wants to do when he survives this genocide, the places he will see, the books he will read. He said he’d like to visit Cardiff, a town he first encountered watching Real Madrid win the UEFA Champions League against Juventus back in 2017, which was played at the Millennium Stadium. Yahya’s favourite cake, an orange cake, was baked and shared out amongst the guests, Yahya wished everyone well and thanked everyone for coming out, and the night went on. Poets from across Wales took to the stage and read out selected poems of Yahya’s and their own, focusing on resistance and resilience, and music was played.

Setting the tone for the evening, Nelly, a well known Palestine activist in Cardiff, took to the stage and, without a mic, read a poem so loudly it echoed and bounced off the empty office buildings and hotels, it felt like the whole of Cardiff city centre could have heard it. The evening ended with the reading of ‘When I Survive’, which moved many in the crowd to tears.

The night was organised by a collection of activists, Caerdydd Students For Palestine, the SPAF Collective, the Broken Speakers Clwb, and a Welsh activist called Hannah Saunders. Y Seren Goch spoke with some of the organisers, and asked Hannah about the night, how it came about, how she met Yahya in the first place and what drove Hannah and their comrades to organise this evening of solidarity.

Hannah Saunders

When asked about what this event was and why this night was organised, Hannah said: “Tonight we came out together in Cardiff at Jacob’s Market [ed: Rooftop Bar], and the reason we were coming out was to celebrate Yahya al Hamarna’s 24th birthday in Gaza, and also the release of his debut book of poetry, My Voice Cannot Be Bombed. We came out to show solidarity with Yahya, and show him that his voice is travelling across continents during this genocide.”.

We asked Hannah about the first project, the ‘When I Survive’ Album, how much the album raised and how they worked with SPAF Collective, a South Wales working class artist group, to create the art for the album. Hannah said “I think [we’ve raised] around £3000 now for the both of them, and what’s come out of this album is that SPAF turned the beautiful art they made into a quilt, and a cushion which is sitting in my home waiting for Yahya to come and collect it. We’ve exhibited the quilt in Tenby Museum as part of SPAF Collective’s exhibition there, alongside protest banners.”. Hannah went on to say that this quilt is now being raffled off, which has raised an additional £700 which will go to both Yusef and Yahya. Tickets to the raffle can be bought here, the raffle ends at the end of August 2025.

We asked Hannah how she met Yahya, they said “I’ve been very vocal about Palestine, and in 2024 I received a message out of the blue from Yahya on Instagram, who told me about how he’s a political science student and his university has been destroyed. We started talking, and now he’s one of my best friends in the whole world. I’ve been getting to know his family, friends, I spoke to his mother today, and I’ve been seeing his poetry develop.”.

Broken Speakers Clwb

Y Seren Goch also spoke with Tom from the Broken Speakers Clwb, a Cardiff poetry night which is held at the Flute & Tankard every 2nd Thursday of the month. They also host a poetry writing and performance workshop at Collective Cymru every 4th Thursday.

We asked Tom about the relationship of poetry to struggle, resistance and revolution, Tom said: “From the earliest recorded parts of human history, poetry and story telling has been a tool for working people to resist. In contemporary history, we see it in Ireland, in Palestine, in Congo, Haiti, Yemen, Lebanon, we saw it in Europe in the two world wars. Poetry is always used as a tool to resist the evil forces that exist in the world, and we’re seeing it here tonight, hearing from a poet who is saying that his voice cannot be bombed.”.

We asked about the poetry night, and the ethos behind it, to which Tom answered: “We started this over a year ago, there’s no strict runnings, you come down, you read poems that have influenced you, tell stories about your family and your upbringing, there’s no rules there. You pay £2, which funds the night, we always start with reading a poem from Yahya too, we’ve been friends with him for a while now, we read his poems until he can come to Cardiff and read one with us, which he fucking will.”.

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“My Voice Cannot Be Bombed is a searing collection of poems written amidst the ongoing genocide in Gaza. In his luminous debut, Yahya Al Hamarna documents the brutalities of war alongside the fragile rituals of everyday life—studying, walking to the park, reading poetry, preparing tea, mourning, surviving.”

Iskra Books

‘My Voice Cannot Be Bombed’, a selection of poetry by Yahya al Hamarna, is available to order from Iskra Books now.