Ramsey Hanhan (رمزي حنحن) is the author of two books on Palestine: an autobiographical novel, Fugitive Dreams, and a book of poetry and essays on Gaza (coming soon). His short stories and poetry appear in The Harvard Advocate, Fikra magazine, and elsewhere. He also speaks publicly about Palestine, literature, nature, spirituality, and healing. Ramsey was formerly a physics professor noted for his computer models that describe and predict complexity in nature. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Michigan and resides near Baltimore, Maryland.
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What does 2026 bring?
Published 8 days ago • 3 min read
Dear Reader,
A new year accentuates the uncertainty we live. The future is wide open. We do our best, but it never ceases to surprise.
I concluded 2025 in mourning. My publisher, Marc Estrin of Fomite Press, passed away in August. Amid the train of lives lost that year, and the flurry of events surrounding the non-ceasefire, my grief for this personal loss was deferred.
Marc Estrin, co-founder of Fomite press, novelist, cellist, puppeteer at Bread and Puppet Theater, and activist in Vermonters for Justice in Palestine
To me, Marc was not only a publisher, but a mentor and a friend. He generously shared his advice when sought. His comments on an early version of the romantic novel I’m currently writing are invaluable.
It didn’t take me long to choose Marc to publish Fugitive Dreams. I sensed he was in the business for the right reasons - the love of books and justice. Conscious that I wrote on a sensitive - even forbidden topic - I trusted he would have my back, and he did! Not only that, he went on to find and publish other Palestinian authors.
His departure is therefore a great loss for marginalized voices in the publishing world.
(Fomite assures me they are committed to publishing my new book, ‘Palestine Bleeds For You,’ and soon. Please stay tuned.)
* * *
Cleaning my desktop, I came across this photo from OCT 6. Yes. 2023. Needless to say, for the last two years, such a smile has been absent my face.
I had taken this photo the moment I arrived in Ramallah. This was my first visit after publishing Fugitive Dreams. The sight of a Palestinian flag bound to the electricity post brought back fond memories of my childhood. (During the First Intifada, we tied flags to stones and slung them over the power lines as an act of defiance.)
For Palestinians, freedom is a lifelong struggle. It is all-encompassing: Joy is no less part of the struggle as love, grief, or anger.
Let this photo be a reminder that, in the face of grave injustice,
SMILING is a revolutionary act!
May the smile of freedom grace the face of every child in Palestine, and all oppressed children around the world. We shall smile again!
Christmas is made in Palestine
Wishing you all a happy and peaceful new year. Thank you for sticking with me. Enjoy the collected tours of Palestine, below. I appreciate your continued support!
With love, Ramsey Hanhan
PS I had penned this newsletter on Friday night, before learning about the strikes on Venezuela. “Perhaps Gaza is the example — what they’d do to any part of the world that dares rise against the corporations?” So I wrote on Feb. 5, 2024 – nearly two years ago.
FEATURED
Photographic Tours of Palestine
As a service to my readers, I have been posting daily photos from Palestine on LinkedIn, accompanied by quotes from my book Fugitive Dreams. Thanks to the popularity of this feature, I have collected these tours into an easily browsable set of photo essays on Medium. Currently, the collection has 29 tours and many more are planned.
💚 al-Khalil (Hebron), where occupation is in da house
❤️ Majdal Shams and the ‘Golan Heights’
💚 Fire Mountain: Nablus, Palestine
❤️ Ruins Roman and Modern: Sebastia and the Northern West Bank
💚 Maze of Documents: Israel’s Color-Coded “Democracy”
❤️ How Palestine is Being Colonized
💚 The Road to Bethlehem
❤️ Birthplace of Jesus: Church of the Nativity
💚 Shepherd’s Field: Beit Sahur and the Museum of Natural History
❤️ ‘World’s Largest Canvas: Wall St., Bethlehem
💚 Portrait of Bethlehem the Week Before O7
❤️A Monastery in Beit Jala and the Village of Battir
💚 Mar Saba Greek Orthodox Monastery
❤️ Poem: Smuggled (on circumventing the Qalandia checkpoint)
💚 The Educational Bookshop, Jerusalem
❤️ Icons of Palestinian Identity (4 parts)
💚 Aerial Tour
How to escape the Medium paywall (for nonmembers):
More Photo Essays Planned
Drawing upon my collection of some 30,000 of my own original photos, I have many more planned.
Your support helps make these a reality
It takes effort to collect, write, and produce these photographic essays. If you have enjoyed any of these tours, please consider making a contribution to help keep my work independent.
Upcoming Tours
🖤 Jerusalem (Mt of Olives, Wall Walk, the Old City, Salah al-Din Street)
🖤 Ramallah (Old City, El-Bireh, the Friends School, the surrounding countryside)
Ramsey Hanhan is the author of two books on Palestine: an autobiographical novel, Fugitive Dreams, and a book of poetry and essays on Gaza (coming soon). His short stories and poetry appear in The Harvard Advocate, Fikra magazine, and elsewhere. He also speaks publicly about Palestine, literature, nature, spirituality, and healing. Ramsey was formerly a physics professor noted for his computer models that describe and predict complexity in nature. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Michigan and resides near Baltimore, Maryland.
Fugitive Dreams. “Tell me more about the Israelis,” whispers five-year-old Ksenya to her dad on a visit to her grandparents in Palestine. Sameer immediately feels a weight descend upon his shoulders. How to tell her the truth without “its bloodied shadow staining the course of her life?” Join Sameer on a personal journey through the last five decades of the Palestinian experience.
Author and public speaker. Subscribe to my monthly newsletter for events announcements, upcoming books and other written works, and more.
Ramsey Hanhan (رمزي حنحن) is the author of two books on Palestine: an autobiographical novel, Fugitive Dreams, and a book of poetry and essays on Gaza (coming soon). His short stories and poetry appear in The Harvard Advocate, Fikra magazine, and elsewhere. He also speaks publicly about Palestine, literature, nature, spirituality, and healing. Ramsey was formerly a physics professor noted for his computer models that describe and predict complexity in nature. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Michigan and resides near Baltimore, Maryland.
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