Gaza, Hiroshima and...

1)
doctor at Al-Shifa:
'the scent of the just died
stays on...
blood cannot be washed
with the purest of tears'


2)

the soldier gifts
a toy gun
to a weeping kid
...ceasefire
on the Eid morning


3)

a woman's home
shattered
by the air-strike:
'can the heroes of war
invade the Heavens'


***************************


Hiroshima Day


a little girl prays
along with her granny--
Hiroshima Day

Thoughts on an Eid morning

He won't be hearing the rattle
of gunfire today
Men will gather for prayers
to thank the Lord
for giving a life
under an umbrella of blood-lit stars

Last night he saw the moon
sickle-shaped, its silvery edge
maybe not as cunning as a table-knife,
reminds him of previous festivals,
of the scent of pilaf, new dresses
and echoes of adaan

Echoes of early man call out to each other
There won't be any rattle of gunfire today
even the hands soaked with blood
will join in prayers

Satan at work - Tanka

Satan at work:
'I will never bow down
to Adam'-
the shrapnel
in a young boy's stomach



sun sets behind
bullet-ridden clouds
at Golgotha
a violin plays out
the agony of mankind




watching the trail
of a Grad missile...
was this the route
followed by the Star
of Bethlehem?