Martin Scorsese congratulates Palestinian writer Mosab Abu Toha on Pulitzer win

Palestinian poet and author Mosab Abu Toha has been honored with the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary, in recognition of his powerful essays chronicling the lives of Palestinians in Gaza.

The essays, published in The New Yorker, intertwine firsthand accounts of war and personal reflections, offering readers a rare and deeply human perspective from within one of the world's most embattled regions.

“I have just won a Pulitzer Prize for Commentary,” Abu Toha announced on X. “Let it bring hope / Let it be a tale.”

I have just won a Pulitzer Prize for Commentary.

Let it bring hope
Let it be a tale pic.twitter.com/VP6RsPY6vz

— Mosab Abu Toha (@MosabAbuToha) May 5, 2025

The Pulitzer committee praised his work for portraying “the physical and emotional carnage in Gaza” in a way that merges “deep reporting with the intimacy of memoir.” His writings document more than a year and a half of conflict in the region, with scenes ranging from daily survival to profound loss.

Abu Toha, 32, has spent nearly his entire life in Gaza. In 2023, while attempting to escape the violence in northern Gaza with his wife and three children, he was detained by the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF).

“They separated me from my family, beat me, and interrogated me,” he later wrote. After an international outcry from colleagues and supporters, he was eventually released and allowed to travel to the US.

In his essays, Abu Toha juxtaposes the struggle for food and safety in Gaza with memories of quieter days. “I yearn to return to Gaza, sit at the kitchen table with my mother and father, and make tea for my sisters,” he wrote. “I do not need to eat. I only want to look at them again.”

One haunting piece recalls the devastation of Jabalia refugee camp, where he spent much of his childhood. “I looked at the photos again and again, and an image of a graveyard that grows and grows formed in my mind,” he reflected.

His work also highlights the indignities faced by Palestinians outside their homeland. He recounted an experience during a layover in Boston where a TSA agent tested his hands for explosives. “I was kidnapped by the Israeli army in November,” he told the agent, “before being stripped of my clothes … Today, you come and separate me from my wife and kids, just like the army did a few months ago.”

Abu Toha’s recognition has drawn admiration from around the world—including from acclaimed filmmaker Martin Scorsese, who personally congratulated him on his win.

"Guess who made sure to join us to honor me and celebrate the Pulitzer Prize, even in the smallest way as our families in Gaza starve and continue to be in danger?" Abu Toha posted on Instagram. "Well, there is only one Martin Scorsese."

 

 

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A post shared by Mosab Abu Toha (@mosab_abutoha)