Nagham Abu Samra (Arabic: نغم أبو سمرة; 1999 or 2000 – 12 January 2024) was a Palestinian karate champion who opened a sports training club for girls in Gaza. She was expected to represent Palestine in the 2024 Summer Olympics but was killed in an Israeli airstrike during the Israel–Hamas war.
Life
Early life and karate career
Abu Samra was from the Nuseirat refugee camp. She began learning karate as a child, eventually attaining a black belt. Although she was criticized by some people in her community for participating in a sport they considered to be off-limits for girls, her father supported her interest in karate. Abu Samra competed several times at the Palestine Karate Championship, placing first in 2019. In 2021, she started a sports training club for girls. She advocated for girls to participate in sports, stating: "I wanted every girl to feel her strength from within, not from those surrounding her." According to her father, she wanted to "inspire generations of girls to play karate". Considered a Palestinian sports "icon", Abu Samra was expected to represent Palestine in the 2024 Summer Olympics.
Abu Samra obtained a master's degree in Physical Education at Al-Aqsa University. Her mother died of cancer shortly before the Israel–Hamas war began in 2023.
Death
On 17 or 18 December 2023, Abu Samra was injured in an Israeli airstrike on her refugee camp that also killed her sister Roseanne. She sustained serious head injuries which put her in a coma, and her right leg was amputated. She was treated in Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital. Due to the hospital's lack of capacity to treat her severe injuries, the hospital attempted to evacuate her. Her father, Marwan, posted a video on social media requesting international assistance in transferring her for medical care. After several weeks, Abu Samra was granted a medical permit and transferred to a hospital in Egypt. A few days later, she died.
Jibril Rajoub, the head of the Palestine Olympic Committee, called her death a loss for Palestinian sports. Abu Samra has been mentioned in several news articles about Palestinian athletes killed by Israel in the Israel–Hamas war.
See also
References
- ^ Abed, Abubaker (2024-02-27). "Nagham Abu Samra: Palestine karate champion, victim of Israel's war on Gaza". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 2024-09-26.
- ^ Zbeedat, Nagham (2024-08-15). "A Poet, a Karate Champion, a Famed Artist: The Life Stories of 40 of the 40,000 Killed in Gaza". Haaretz. Archived from the original on 2024-08-15.
- ^ Harouda, Ameera (2021-04-15). "Nagham Abu Samra: Karate Champion". Ted in Arabic. Retrieved 2024-09-26.
- ^ AlTaher, Nada (2023-12-26). "Female Gazan karate champion loses leg in Israeli strike". The National. Archived from the original on 2023-12-26. Retrieved 2024-09-26.
- ^ "Nagham Abu Samrah: Gaza karate champion dies after being injured in missile strike". Sky News. 2024-01-14. Retrieved 2024-09-26.
- ^ Samaha, Albert (2024-07-24). "He's 18, a taekwondo prodigy — and Palestine's best medal hope". The Washington Post.
- ^ Abed, Abubaker (2024-05-07). "'I've been robbed of my dreams': the sporting tragedy of the war in Gaza". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 2024-09-23. Retrieved 2024-09-26.
- ^ "Sports groups urged to save Palestine karate champion's life". Middle East Monitor. 2024-01-10.
- ^ "'Most beautiful karate player': Gaza female athlete dies after losing leg due to Israeli airstrike". Arab News Japan. Retrieved 2024-09-26.
- "11 Nagham Abu Samra Stock Photos, High-Res Pictures, and Images - Getty Images". Getty Images. Retrieved 2024-09-26.
- Serhan, Yasmeen (2024-07-18). "The IOC Wants the Olympics to Be Apolitical. That's Impossible". TIME. Retrieved 2024-09-26.
- Ali, Rabia (2024-07-26). "Gaza's athletes caught between Olympic dreams and Israeli bombs on cusp of Paris 2024". Anadolu Agency. Retrieved 2024-09-26.