The celebrities of Heaven on earth…Dr. Samia Raheel Qazi

It felt as if my heart had stopped and my feet were glued to the ground. Such awe that I had never experienced even in the palaces of kings had gripped my heart.

As we entered, there was a strange silence, a peace, a tranquility. It seemed as if the souls of martyrs were cruisiny there, and why wouldn’t they be? It was the home of the mother of three young martyrs. The desire to kiss her hands had brought me, the daughter of Shaheed Abdullah Azzam, and the wife of Khalid Mashal to this place.

When my request reached the father of the martyrs, Ismail Haniyeh, that the daughter of Qazi Hussain Ahmed had come to Qatar and wished to kiss his wife’s hands, he immediately invited us. Then I realized how sweet the sincere relationships of Islamic movements are. He talked for a long time about Pakistan, Jamaat-e-Islami, and my father. Khalid Mashal’s wife said that Qazi Sahib is still remembered in our home as a kind elder.

When Ismail Haniyeh’s wife told me that three of their thirteen children had been martyred, with ten others still remaining, and that they were witnessing the promise of Allah with patience and victory, I couldn’t hold back my tears. Oh Allah, what kind of people are these whom You have blessed with such courage.

Ismail Haniyeh’s children are still in Gaza, and the entire family seems to be filled with the desire for paradise and martyrdom. Ismail Haniyeh’s determination indicated that when the night of oppression and terror becomes darkest, say to your heart, do not fear, victory is near.

I had returned from meeting Ismail Haniyeh after attending a conference for Palestinian women in Qatar. Today, his martyrdom proved my belief that I had the honor of meeting the residents of paradise in that house. They were so passionate about martyrdom and equally content and resolute. In the conference, the speakers said that these people of Palestine and Gaza are not of this world but residents of heaven on planet earth. And today, God willing, Ismail Haniyeh has also departed to meet his Lord with his martyrs after living an enviable life. May Allah grant us a fraction of the faith and determination of these martyrs, and may our end be with the prophets, the truthful, and the martyrs.