In fact, the idea for the mass march was devised by just one Palestinian, 34-year-old journalist and poet Ahmed Abu Artemah, as he watched birds flying freely into the land he was forbidden.

It all started with a post. What would happen if thousands of Gazans attempted to peacefully cross the fence that separated them from their ancestral lands?

I looked at the birds flying at the fences without being held by anyone.

Birds decide to fly and fly.

I have discovered the real reason for abhorring the occupation.

I hate it because it contradicts the laws of nature.

It forbids me to be a flying bird.

That was a poem by Ahmed Abu Artima,

the founder of the great march of return

protests.

Now, part of the reason I'm playing this clip to open up the podcast

is because of the heart-wrenching and very sad reality of what's going on in Gaza right now.

And I played this particular clip from Abby's documentary film Gaza Fights for Freedom,

which everybody should watch if they haven't seen it yet. It's on YouTube. It's free.

Please go watch it if you haven't seen it yet it's it's on YouTube it's free please go watch it if you haven't seen it but I met Artemis Tima's family has experienced a great loss

during this conflict.

He's been sending Abby messages directly,

and he relayed to her that several members of his own family were killed,

and that he's badly injured from being near an airstrike or an airstrike.

I'm not exactly sure the exact specifics.

So I'm not going to pontificate about that.

But based on the information he gave Abby, it sounds very bad and very tragic.

...