By Mariam Mushtaha

On the day his daughter Sana was born, Palestinian journalist Yahya Subaih was killed by an Israeli airstrike in Gaza.

To be a journalist in Gaza means living with the constant threat of death–not just for yourself, but for your loved ones too.

Since October 7, Israel has followed a deliberate policy of targeting journalists to silence their voices, bury the truth, and hide its crimes against civilians.

By May 7, data from the Government Media Office reported that 213 journalists had been killed by Israeli forces. But on that day, the killing of journalist Yahya Subaih in the Al-Rimal neighborhood raised the number to 214.

Subaih served as a correspondent for Palestine Post and worked as an editor for various local and international media outlets. He frequently shared footage and stories from the ground, posting about soup kitchens and community relief efforts on his Instagram account.

Subaih was among the journalists who refused to follow Israeli orders to evacuate to the south. By choosing to stay in the north, he knowingly risked his life to fulfill his journalistic duty—documenting and exposing the ongoing genocide alongside his brother, Yousef.

“Yahya did not run away. He stayed here with his brother, determined to carry on the message,” his mother said.

Palestinian Journalist Killed Hours after Celebrating Birth of Daughter

Yousef added, “From day one, he was committed. He tirelessly searched for any place with a stable internet connection, just to make sure his reports and images reached the world.”

Subaih was already a father to two sons: Bara, 5, and Kenan, 3. He and his wife, Amal, had been eagerly awaiting the arrival of their first daughter. At 8 AM on May 7, that long-awaited moment came: their baby girl was born. Subaih was overjoyed.

He shared a photo on his Instagram account holding his newborn daughter in his arms.

“A little princess has brightened our world. Praise be to Allah who blessed us with the arrival of our beautiful daughter. May He make her among the righteous and a source of joy for our hearts,” he wrote.

Her Name is Sana

“Yahya had made me a promise. I would name the girls and he would name the boys,” Amal told the Palestine Chronicle.

“When I chose the name, Sana, he held it in his heart. He refused to reveal it to anyone, saying he would only announce it once I recovered safely from my surgery. He shared it only with a few close friends, never posting it on social media. It was a secret kept in love–now left in silence.”

Subaih celebrated Sana’s birth with his brothers-in-law, Rami Subaih, and a friend at a local restaurant on Al-Wehda Street in the Al-Rimal neighborhood. He didn’t know that the day his daughter came into the world would be the day he would leave it.

Subaih’s mother told the Palestinian Information Center: “My son left without carrying his camera. He left while eating a simple meal, like any human being… He wasn’t carrying a weapon; he wasn’t on the front lines.

He was just a father and a simple man. I always feared for him when he went out to film, but I never imagined he would be killed while sitting in a place that was supposed to be safe”.

‘His Voice Went Silent’

Two powerful airstrikes hit the street, which was usually overcrowded with people, tents, and market stalls. Dozens of people were killed. Due to the severe destruction, it was impossible to evacuate them quickly.

Subaih, along with his friend and his sister’s husband, Rami, died instantly.

Subaih’s mother continued, “Minutes before his death, his grandmother called to congratulate him, but suddenly, his voice went silent. She didn’t know that this would be their last call.”

Numerous organizations strongly condemned Subaih’s killing.

“Enough! Words fail to convey the endless nightmare faced by journalists in Gaza. Yahya Subaih was torn from his profession and his family by a bomb from the Israeli armed forces,” Thibaut Bruttin, Director-General of Reporters Sans Frontières (RSF), said.

“His name now joins the list of almost 200 journalists killed in Gaza over the past 18 months. The impunity for crimes committed against these reporters cannot be tolerated, yet the international community continues to fail each day to force Israel to protect Palestinian journalists,” he continued.

Subaih’s story must not be forgotten. Though he has left us, his legacy lives on.

Sana, Bara, and Kenan will carry their father’s message, proving to the world that Gaza’s children, even when orphaned, are not only brave but willing to sacrifice everything to see their homeland free and independent.

The Israeli occupation may want to bury the truth. But as long as there is one voice left to speak it, the truth can never be silenced.

(The Palestine Chronicle)