Nablus, occupied West Bank – Before he was killed by an Israeli drone 18 months ago at the young age of 17, Wael Mesheh was an aspiring university student who wanted to be a successful computer programmer.But having seen five of his relatives and friends cut down by Israeli forces during almost daily raids of his northern West Bank refugee camp of Balata, the Palestinian teenager came to believe that life and death were the same, engendering a desire to sacrifice himself for the cause of Palestinian freedom, and therefore turning himself – in his belief – into a “martyr”.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list“What our family was suffering planted this desire inside him: He always knew he wanted to fight and see his country without occupation,” Wael’s 47-year-old father, Belal, told Al Jazeera.“And it was not just Wael, but many of his generation in the camp.”Before he turned 17, Wael had been imprisoned for throwing stones at Israeli soldiers, assaulted in jail, and then freed in a prisoner exchange deal.He joined the Qassam Brigades – the armed wing of Hamas – once he got out of prison, and was eventually killed in August 2024 while fighting Israeli troops near his home in Balata, southeast of Nablus.Wael’s story is typical of many young Palestinians in the West Bank’s refugee camps. Children learn from an early age that trauma will define their lives in ways even other Palestinians are spared.Psychologi …
