The Gaza Sunbirds: Cycling, Resilience, and Humanitarian Aid

The Gaza Sunbirds started as a para-cycling team but have become a symbol of resilience and mutual aid in Gaza. Co-founder Karim Ali joins us to share the team’s journey—from breaking barriers in para-cycling to delivering life-saving aid by bike in the midst of war. We discuss the power of representation, the challenges of competing at the highest levels, and how cycling has become a tool for survival and solidarity. Tune in to learn how you can support their work.

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Episode Transcript

Karim (00:00):
And if you asked us back in August of 2023, what our dream was, our

(00:05):
dream was that there would be a day inthe future where there is no need for
the Gaza sunbirds because there are nomore people in Gaza that are getting
amputations or having disabilities asa result of of the occupation siege.
You know, It's not to say that paracyclingwouldn't exist without the occupation,
but we have one of the highest ratesof amputation and one of the highest

(00:28):
rates of disabilities per capita.
And that isn't because there'ssomething wrong with our bodies.
No, it's because unfortunatelyour bodies aren't bulletproof.
There's been around 21, 000 peoplewith amputations in the last year
and A bit last 15 months, butwhat's horrifying to think about.
So in 2014 and the war in Gaza,there was 250 people that experienced

(00:52):
amputations, but around 930 people thathad permanent disabilities as the result
of injuries sustained during the war.
So what that means is that in any givenconflict that's happening the number
of people with permanent disabilitieswill always be multiple times more than
the number of people with amputations.
And so we're expecting some kindof range of around, you know,

(01:16):
80, 000 people after this war.
And that's horrifying to think about.