WATCH: Full Video of Plestia Alaqad's Book Talk at Diwan

Plestia Alaqad’s bestseller 'The Eyes of Gaza: A Diary of Resilience' just turned one year old at Diwan Bookstore. The award-winning author and journalist marked the milestone in conversation with CairoScene's Laila Shadid, joined by a crowd of hundreds.

Plestia unpacked the process of turning her diary entries while reporting on the first 45 days of the genocide in Gaza into a book, one that became an instant New York Times Bestseller. She reflected on the weight of reporting on Gaza now from abroad, and her journey these past two years from Gaza, to Egypt, to Australia, and now to Beirut.

This exclusive video captures the raw conversation in full, grounded in a book that made so many feel like Gaza is not so far away.