Under a blue sky, Maryam Nizar Rayyan, 10 years old, played with her eleven brothers and sisters on the roof of their house, in the company of her father and his four wives. On the 4th day of the Israeli assault on Gaza, innocent Maryam heard the sound of the Israeli F16 planes and looked at the sky, but never expected that those planes came to put an end to her childhood as well as to the lives of many members of her family who were at home at that time.

On the 1st day of the New Year 2009, at 02:00 pm, Israeli F16 planes targeted the Rayyans's house with three missiles. The whole house was ruined and collapsed on the heads of its residents. Maryam was killed along with 13 members of her family; the father and his four wives in addition to 7 of her sisters and brothers. No one of the family had survived but 3 brothers who were not at the house then.

Maryyam and the other family bodies were picked up from under the rubble. Dr. Mu`awiya Hassanein (the manager of ambulance and emergency in Gaza) says, “Most of the bodies of the Rayyans were found distorted, which indicates how much violent the bomb was.” More than 10 thousands mourners attended the funeral of the Rayyans the following day.”

Maryam was loved a lot by her father who asked her mother to sew a beautiful dress especially for her. Maryam was over the moon with her new dress; she wore it every time she went to play outside her home. Amid all the girls of the district, Maryam attracted the attention of everybody by her innocence and beauty in that dress. 

Her Dreams:

Belal, Maryam’s Brother, remembers “Maryam was very polite; she called my wife as aunt and addressed the old with titles. She was very hard worker who taught her class mates some subjects, especially English, upon the request of her teachers. Maryam spoke a lot with everybody, but I loved her talking about the big dream of gaining her postgraduate studies she was the only one of the Rayyans' who wished to study medicine.”

Belal adds “Maryam, the promising pupil of the fourth grade, dreamt of a better tomorrow and future and eagerly awaited the moment she can go back to her school and kept saying “when I come back to school, I will do this and that”. Yet, the occupation forces deprived her of her dream and from a peaceful life like all other children across the world.”

Mona, Belal’s daughter, misses Maryam a lot; she talks to her mother about Maryam “May Allah rest her soul; she was so kind and patiently taught her friends. Maryam observed all prayers in the mosque of her district. After Al-Asr (Afternoon prayer) she used to memorize the Noble Quran with her friends.”

When the assault on Gaza came to an end, Mona went to the school for the first time after the death of Maryam and all her uncles. Standing before the pupils in the class, Maryam’s teacher could not control her tears and mourned her most promising pupil, Maryam.