Mohammed Moussa | To write poetry on genocide

Book launch of The Face before you: To write poetry on genocide by Mohammed Moussa, with Nada Shawa.

Readings and Q and A with Mohammed Moussa, podcast host and founder of Gaza Poets.

Mohammed Moussa is a Palestinian poet, podcast host and founder of the Gaza Poets — a platform for emerging voices from Gaza and beyond. Born and raised in Gaza, he now lives in Turkey, where he continues to write and build connections across borders.

EDINBURGH ― with guest Nada Shawa, United Augustine Church, George IV Bridge

6:30pm Saturday 24th January

Follow Mohammed Moussa and Gaza Poets on Instagram:

@gaza.guy @gazapoets

The face before you confronts the weight of generational trauma, the fragility of memory, and the indelible scars of genocide. Moussa refuses to let Gaza's voice fade or be obliterated.

Along with a reading from Nada Shawa Mohammed will be answering questions and discussing the genocide, responses and any reckonings.

The face before you: To write poetry on genocide

by Mohammed Moussa

Publisher: Leamington Books

Format: Paperback

Genres: Poetry, Protest Poetry, War Poetry, Testimonial Literature

Poetry Pages: 104

ISBN: 9781068598005

Price: £9.99

Publication Date: 25/02/2026

Book will also Avaialble at these Scottish Book Launches

Questions: [email protected]

The face before you is the third collection from Mohammed Moussa.

the face before you,

marred with blood and unseen wounds,

bears the scars of hope and peace

that the world pledged to me.

It's the visage of a childhood

lost beneath the rubble,

alongside my family

and the city that I can no longer see.

Mohammad Moussa’s poems are a window into the unimaginable hell of surviving a genocide. They are the desperate fractured record of a war, and at the same time a monument to survival and resistance.

HENRY BELL

Nada Shawa is a Palestinian poet and dancer who moved to Scotland alone at the age of eight to receive treatment for her cerebral palsy, and has lived here ever since.

Indigenous Soul moves between Gaza and Scotland, memoir and poetry, warm love and crushing grief, family stories and grave injustices, with an impressive succinctness and clarity.

Nada Shawa’s writing is delicate, vivid and full of hope despite the grave personal losses which she laments.—Raja Shehadeh

Grief and sorrow, the joy of good company, family and friendship, and through it all, music, of all kinds, give this short book a remarkable buoyancy and assurance.—Alan Riach, The National

A complex, deeply personal story which paints a distinct picture of a resilient and caring author and her family.—Marianne Tambini, Snack Magazine

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Host or Publisher LEAMINGTON