A year ago, Mussa Hijazi, a stone-throwing young teenager of the first Intifada who became a long-serving Canberra lawyer, laid out three options on how the conflict in Gaza would end.

In reverse order, they were:

Now, he says, “Though I held some tiny, almost negligible hope deep inside, I knew it was unlikely and merely suggesting it perhaps makes me seem naïve.”

Now, he confirms, “I never really thought Option 2 would become a reality.”

When he gave his first option last November, I was shocked. Bad as things were then, I couldn’t believe it would really come to pass.

Now, Mussa says, “Clearly Option 1 is the one Israel is pursuing. Obviously, they have not completed the task, but they are doing what they can.

Mussa continues to organise rallies in Canberra and he continues to monitor Middle East news closely while still managing his law firm. His commitment is unwavering despite his deep understanding of Australian ignorance and prejudice.

As Pearls quoted him last year, “When I first arrived back here [from Palestine], I quickly realised … if you identified as Palestinian … you were assumed to be a terrorist. I was a member of the Army Reserves here for some five........

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