Before the war, Hamada Shaqoura was a food blogger. Now, he spends his days cooking to feed children and displaced people in camps. And he figured out a way to reach millions on social media without saying a word. His intense stare at the camera as he cooks various dishes has been easy for many to understand. Hamada finally opens up and shares his story in detail with Business Insider. He told us why he sees food as a symbol of resistance and why it’s important for him to cook food people had before the war, like chicken wings, tacos, croissants and popsicles.
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00:00I started making food because I had to do something.
00:08I can't stay without doing anything.
00:12I'm not a chef.
00:16I'm a food blogger.
00:25For me, cooking is the symbol of persistence.
00:30Food, let's say, before the war.
00:32No, no, no!
00:35It gave me a sense of satisfaction.
00:39I was a food blogger for most of the restaurants in Gaza.
00:42I tried new dishes every day.
00:46Today, I communicate with the whole world through my tired and angry mind.
00:51There's nothing to worry about.
00:54Even the simplest things are normal.
01:08There's always the sound of a gun.
01:15You have to go out and do your job.
01:18You have to go out and do your job.
01:22Because a lot of people will eat while you're gone.
01:29I'm always worried, especially when I go out in the morning.
01:42I feel like I might never come back.
01:46There's no security.
01:50Not on the road.
01:54Not anywhere.
01:57Finding food is very difficult.
02:09I'm not the one who decides what to cook.
02:12The market is the one who decides.
02:17Prices are high.
02:19It's hard to buy a lot of things.
02:25All these things are difficult.
02:27I face them every day.
02:31How many bananas?
02:33Four?
02:34Four?
02:35A kilo?
02:36Seven?
02:38How much is this ketchup?
02:40How much is this ketchup?
02:42Oh, that's a lot.
02:46What's your name?
02:48Moussa?
02:49Where do you live?
02:51Where do you live?
02:53In Yunis.
02:54In Yunis?
02:57It's been months since I've eaten meat, chicken, fish, or any other type of meat.
03:04It's been a while since I've eaten chicken breast or wings.
03:12If I want 50 kilos,
03:14you have 50 kilos?
03:17We'll make wings and breast.
03:21We'll make the sauces and everything we make before lunch.
03:24You're not a photographer.
03:32The thing I like to do the most is cleaning the wings.
03:36I'll use this brush to clean the wings.
03:38It's clean.
03:42Brush.
03:48I don't want any hair.
03:51The thing I like the most about making this food, or these quantities,
03:55is that I've seen a lot of people saying that they miss the food from before the war.
04:06I made my first cooking video after five months of the war.
04:12I decided to make tuna butter based on what we have in Gaza.
04:18And thank God, it turned out well.
04:20And it started to spread after my video in an unusual way.
04:30I felt that I started to become famous after the taco video in Mexico.
04:35I felt that people outside started to know me and started to follow me.
04:49All of this was made possible by me,
04:52to help the children.
04:54That's all.
04:58Water Million Relief contacted me.
05:02They saw the videos and asked me
05:05why I didn't try to work with them to make food.
05:13They receive donations from GoFundMe.
05:17They pay for the ingredients.
05:20One.
05:22One, two.
05:24These donations helped me a lot.
05:30I hold it like this.
05:32It was like this.
05:36The idea of this video came from the fact that
05:39we've been talking to the world in all languages for months.
05:43We've been talking to the world in all languages for months.
05:47The whole world started to move.
05:52The idea came from the fact that the world speaks the language of silence.
05:59Maybe the language of the eyes.
06:01To understand it.
06:13Chicken.
06:18No, no, leave the boy alone.
06:20I'm hungry.
06:21I don't know how much I can eat.
06:27I haven't eaten meat since the beginning of the war.
06:33I haven't eaten anything good since the beginning of the war.
06:37All these people used to live well.
06:39What happens to them is very difficult.
06:43Uncle, we have three children.
06:46How are you, uncle?
06:47We have three children.
06:48That's good.
06:52I want to give people hope through this food.
07:04Come and taste it.
07:06Come on.
07:10That's right.
07:14I want to give them something to be patient with.
07:17Something to eat and enjoy.
07:19To feel that there is still hope.
07:25I always give them hope that the war is not over yet,
07:27but that life is over.
07:32Maybe the next few days will be good.
07:36Where are you going?
07:39We are looking for a high place to upload this video.
07:45There is no internet in all of Tunisia.
07:49This is the highest area.
07:52Who is right?
07:53Partner or mobile phone?
07:56Partner?
07:59There is no network.
08:01There is no internet.
08:05There is no internet.
08:11How are you?
08:12How are you?
08:14I have been trying to connect to the internet for an hour to upload the video.
08:17The video?
08:18Yes, I want to connect to the internet for 10 minutes.
08:20How long is the video?
08:21One minute.
08:22There is internet in front of us.
08:25But it takes a lot of time to upload.
08:27No problem.
08:28I will fix it.
08:29I will fix it.
08:31Really?
08:32Yes.
08:34You are welcome.
08:42I am trying to connect to the internet to upload the video.
08:45I want you to help me.
08:47There is internet in front of us.
08:49Yes, there is internet.
08:51I have been trying to connect to the internet for three days.
08:56When I sit on the internet and see things,
08:58I feel that I am very far from the internet.
09:00I feel that I am very far from the reality of the people outside.
09:06I see the comments on my Instagram page.
09:10There are a lot of nice comments.
09:12Honestly, it makes me happy and gives me energy to think about new things.
09:20The thing I miss the most before the war is to live in my house.
09:28This is my uncle's house.
09:31We don't have privacy.
09:35This is my father's bedroom.
09:37This is my brother's bedroom.
09:40This is my brother's bedroom.
09:42And this is my bedroom.
09:44The thing I miss the most is stability, privacy, and peace of mind.
09:52And that you have the right to decide what to do and what not to do.
10:01This is my father's bedroom.
10:11The last video I saw of my house was when I was shelled.
10:17I didn't live in my house for two months.
10:20Because I was newly married.
10:24When I left my house, I didn't take anything that was necessary.
10:29I told him, when I come back, I'll take it.
10:32When I come back, I'll take it.
10:35When did you come back?
10:36Three days ago.
10:38Did you take your laptop?
10:39Yes, I took my laptop because I work on my laptop.
10:43And I kept my wedding ring at home.
10:47Did you bring it?
10:48Yes, I did.
10:52I was very happy.
10:53I was very happy.
10:55And these photos were one of the most precious things that we have.
11:03In all moments of our lives, food is the most important thing.
11:05No, but when I was hungry, I didn't eat in the morning.
11:09And when we did the photo shoot, we also brought food.
11:14It was a nice day.
11:15I was very happy.
11:19I feel like I'm seeing someone else.
11:22I feel like this person is not me.
11:35Before the war, I was the one who took Hamada's photos.
11:41It was difficult for me to do what I did before, because of the war.
11:47But I was helping him with the editing at home.
11:55We wanted him to be known and famous as a food blogger in the world,
12:00but not in the light of our suffering.
12:04For me, this year was like the year that was stolen from us.
12:15We were running all the time.
12:21We were running from one place to another.
12:25We were running to eat, not to run.
12:29It was a period of siege.
12:33There was almost no food.
12:37There was nothing fresh.
12:40I was very afraid of my children in these circumstances.
12:44There was no natural food for any pregnant woman.
12:52The birth was difficult.
12:56The birth took almost six hours.
13:02The first time I saw my son, it was a problem.
13:06The first time I saw my son, it was a shock.
13:11He was finally born.
13:17When I see my son, I imagine what will happen to him.
13:27Will I live a normal life with him?
13:36Why are you so small?
13:38I'm not going to sleep, I'm not going to sleep.
13:45I'm going to kill the pigeons.
13:48Go away, pigeons, don't you dare.
13:51I'm going to laugh at Zuzu and Tainan.
14:03The value of the moment, with my family, I always appreciate it.
14:08I eat more than I eat in a restaurant.
14:13It is very difficult to light a fire, especially when there is no gas.
14:21We have to use the tools of the ruined houses.
14:28And of course it is unhealthy.
14:39When my mother makes food, I like to put something in it,
14:43because I like to eat a lot of delicious food.
14:48I mix it with cans and cans with help.
14:55Despite the difficult circumstances, we try.
15:09When will the pigeons come?
15:13Soon.
15:17I miss being calm, without any anxiety, without any feeling of fear or confusion.
15:39It's all a dream, and then it's gone.
15:52In these circumstances, I can't think about the future.
15:58I have hope that I will be able to end the war and live normally.
16:09But where do I want to live normally?
16:17In Gaza, we don't have houses.
16:20Gaza, Gaza
16:26Ziz, Ziz, Ziz.
16:31That's it, my love.
16:38I just want everything to be fine.
16:42I don't want anything to be cut.
16:45I want to live a normal life with her.
16:51Say bye.
16:53Say bye, Ziza.
16:55Look at him.
16:56Zizo.
16:57Ziz, look at him.
16:58Fear for my family, fear for my son, fear for my wife.
17:02You always feel that every moment is the last.
17:14I want to do something positive, something good.
17:23I want my son to be proud of me.
17:27After the war, I will cook for people, because after the war, there will be more work.
17:37This is my role and my goal.
17:45Goodbye.
18:01The future of Gaza depends on the future of its people.
18:15God.
18:18God.
18:19Is it hot?
18:22No matter what happens, these people will not give up.
18:25They are determined to live.
18:31When the war is over, God willing, I will return to Abed Sam.
18:37God willing, I will continue to live.
18:39God willing, I will continue to live.
18:42God willing, I will continue to live.