'A loud death' Journalist in film of Gaza life killed by Israeli strike

Fatima Hassouna, a young photojournalist living in Gaza, knew that death was always at her doorstep.

- Hannah Ellis-Petersen

Fatima Hassouna, a young photojournalist living in Gaza, knew that death was always at her doorstep. As she spent the past 18 months documenting airstrikes, the demolition of her home, the endless displacement and the killing of 11 family members, all she demanded is that she be allowed to not go quietly.

"If I die, I want a loud death," wrote Hassouna 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."

On Wednesday, days before her wedding, 25-year-old Hassouna was killed in an Israeli airstrike that hit her home in northern Gaza. Ten members of her family, including her pregnant sister, were also killed.

The Israeli military said it had been a targeted strike on a Hamas member involved in attacks on Israeli soldiers and civilians.

Just 24 hours before she was killed, it was announced that a documentary focusing on Hassouna's life in Gaza since the Israeli offensive began would have its debut at a French independent film festival parallel to Cannes.