Ahmed al-Khatib Lyrics

Ahmed had a plastic gun, a toy, that's all it was
He got it from his uncle one December, just because
The older boys were rebels, and he liked to play along
And one day he'd grow up to be as big and brave and strong

Israeli soldiers often searched the Jenin camps and towns
They were looking for insurgents, they were always cracking down
The residents resented these intrusions on their homes
The rebels fired rifles, the younger boys threw stones

One Thursday came another clash between the warring groups
Again, the bullets, stones and rocks, the rebels and the troops
A soldier saw a gunman, and he fired at a boy
The victim was a 12-year old, the weapon was a toy

Ahmed al-Khatib was taken off to Ramallah
But his wounds were such that he was transferred out to Israel
A hospital in Haifa where the Jewish doctors did
Every single thing they could to help this child live

Despite their greatest efforts, Ahmed passed away
A family's worst nightmare turned reality that day
That's when they had every reason to exact revenge
To carry on the history of this hatred between men

They could have shouted out in anger, outrage, grief and pain
They could have caused a riot against the Jews who'd killed their son
What did they do to face this darkest hour of their lives?
They donated his organs so that others might survive

A liver for a baby, two kidneys for a child
One lung each a girl and boy, ages four and five
A woman in her fifties got the organ that she'd need
And a 12-year old received the heart of Ahmed al-Khatib

Some were Palestinian and some of them were Jews
The family's intention was that no one be refused
The neighbors asked the father about this decision he had reached
"The heart that can forgive will bring us closer to peace."

A powerful reminder of those who might forget
The humanity of those who live on the other side of the fence
Somewhere in this world today, six people live and breathe
The legacy of those who cherished Ahmed al-Khatib