Salama Ayesh Muhanna, now 71, remembers planting his first seeds on his family's land in al-Qarara, Gaza, when he was just 17. He is the founder of the Al-Qarara Seed Bank, which was originally established in 2017 near the eastern border of Gaza. The seed bank was later destroyed during Israel’s military operations. Muhanna and his daughter Hanadi, 38, have since moved to Deir al-Balah, where they are working to rebuild Gaza’s only remaining seed bank. They currently live in a displacement camp, managing a small but growing collection of open-pollinated, non-GMO seeds, including local wheat and vegetables like okra and spinach. Each day, Muhanna starts early, tending to a 200-metre-wide plot of land where the family lives, collects seeds, and experiments with new crops. He inspects the seeds for quality, waters the crops, and checks on seedlings. Hanadi, who is studying agriculture and food sovereignty online through a program linked to Coventry University and the Gaza Urban Agriculture Forum, works with local farmers and oversees the growing seed collection. Muhanna humorously predicts that his daughter will be "managing her father" by next year. The seed bank project has two main goals: to collect and preserve local plant seeds that are well-suited to the Gaza environment, and to create a distribution hub for farmers who need to save every possible penny. Once collected, the seeds are given to Palestinian farmers and families in Deir al-Balah, who return the same amount after harvest. So far, about 200 farmers have benefited from Muhanna and Hanadi’s efforts, with support from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). The seeds are deeply connected to Muhanna’s memories of the Palestinian land he has always called home, and he hopes they may be key to achieving future food sovereignty in Gaza. A recent report by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) states that at least 1.2 million people in Gaza now face acute food insecurity due to an escalating humanitarian crisis. Israel continues to restrict access to agricultural land and the import of seeds and organic fertilizers. Dwindling water supplies, degraded soil, and the presence of unexploded ordnance make farming a dangerous activity. Muhanna says that before the war, they had about 42 types of local seeds. "Now we have about 28." He also faces the challenge of climate change, which he says controls their efforts. "When the weather is hot, the seeds spoil," he explains. Sometimes, he must plant nearly a month later than usual, delaying harvests in a race to gather resilient seeds for the future. Pat Griffiths, a spokesperson for the ICRC in Jerusalem, emphasized the importance of the seed bank, stating, "This is about agency. It’s about dignity. It’s about being less dependent on what is or is not allowed to enter Gaza." As the occupying power, Israel has a responsibility to ensure that Palestinians in Gaza have access to the food, goods, and items they need to live. With nearly 2.5 tonnes of seeds collected so far—more than last year—there are signs that the efforts are making progress. For Muhanna, the seeds represent more than just agricultural resources. "Seeds are my identity, my patriotism, my nationality," he says. He adds, "Any country in the world that doesn’t have sovereignty over food security isn’t a country. If we establish sovereignty over food security, then we’ll be a real country."