Huda Ali Ghalia was just 12 years old when her family was enjoying a day out at Sudaniya beach in northern Gaza in June 2006.
What happened next was witnessed by the world: Israeli shells hit the beach killing several people, including her father, stepmother and five of her siblings.
In the aftermath of the explosion a video showed a screaming Huda collapsing next to the body of her father, calling his name. The clip instantly became a symbol of the Palestinian struggle.
Now, the young woman has graduated from university, giving a moving speech about the challenges she has faced growing up with such trauma, and her hopes for the future.
“Remember the girl from the Gaza beach? She was having a good time with her family, happy and laughing. Israeli occupation naval ships struck them. Her father was killed, four of her sisters, her brother and her aunt.
“Her mother was injured, and so were her other four sisters and her brother. She was also injured. She was 12 years old. I am that girl, Huda Ali Ghalia.”
The now 23-year-old thanked her mother in particular for encouraging her to study towards a Bachelor’s degree in sharia and law.
Huda’s mother joined her on stage to hand her a bouquet of flowers. As the two embraced, the audience gave them a standing ovation.
“Huda is not an average person; she is a piece of every Palestinian. She got into our souls and into our hearts, and it is our duty to take care of her and stand by her,” Adel Awadallah, head of the university, said before giving the student an honorary award.
While the Israeli military initially said it was responsible for the bombing, which killed eight civilians and wounded more than 30 during the 2006 summer war between Israel and Hamas, a subsequent Israel Defence Force (IDF) investigation found that the explosion had been caused by a Palestinian landmine.
Human Rights Watch among other rights groups called for an independent investigation into the incident, which the Israeli authorities declined to take part in.
