My friend Al-Hassan, a Liverpool fan who dreamed big, killed in Gaza

Last week, an Israeli air raid levelled a family home in Deir el-Balah, a central town in Gaza.

Al-Hassan Mattar, a 21-year-old studying English literature, was killed, along with his father, 12-year-old sister Tala, grandmother and several relatives who were seeking shelter with them.

Video footage of the aftermath shows the home in ruins. In a widely shared 16-second clip, a young Palestinian man can be seen carrying Tala’s body out of the rubble.

The town has come under repeated attacks throughout the war. It was hit again late on Monday, with casualties reported.

Abubaker Abed, a friend of Al-Hassan’s, has written about his loss. Before the war, the pair would talk about football and obsess over what then seemed like big events, like when Al-Hassan got laser eye surgery. After the latest episode of the Israel-Palestine conflict escalated, their conversations turned to their ambitions. Al-Hassan said he wanted to leave Gaza.

In his last post on X, shared days before he was killed, Al-Hassan said: “What is happening is not normal, the [bombardment is] very violent without stopping. God is enough, and yes, the agent.”

Deir el-Balah, Gaza – The last time I saw Al-Hassan was on the fifth day of the temporary truce. It was November 28, a Tuesday.

We were at his house, we were in good spirits and we felt at peace, compared with the weeks before.

His younger brother Kareem, a cheeky 19-year-old with blue eyes, brown hair and a round face was there along with Osama Abu-Omra, another friend. We roasted sweet potatoes and onions on a small fire and made tea.

His father, Weam, looked at us from the balcony and smiled. Tongue-in-cheek, he asked me: “How is Al-Hassan’s work with the coal fire today?”

“Al-Hassan is the best,” I replied.

Then, his father left with a smile on his face.

Al-Hassan lived in a modest two-storey villa. His grandmother lived downstairs. Outside, the yard was full of parsley and mint. Before the war, Al-Hassan and I used to hang out on the balcony, watch SpongeBob, eat crisps and popcorn, or study for our university exams.

After sunset prayers, Al-Hassan brought me six eggs to cook for dinner. It was all that was left in his fridge. Back then, six eggs would have cost about a dollar. Today, as food shortages get worse, they’d be about $4.

“Are you sure you can cook them properly?” Al-Hassan asked me jokingly.

“Just bring me butter, salt and pepper,” I said.

He nodded his head and hummed in disbelief. “We will see.”

We ate the eggs with a bit of bread. Al-Hassan said it was delicious.

“God willing, this war will end very soon and we will have times like this together again, in peace and comfort,” he said.

At about 7pm, we said our goodbyes and I left.

If I had known that would be the last time I saw him, I would have stayed there and died with him.

We became good friends almost three years ago, one February morning.

I had arrived to my first lecture in English language and literature at the Islamic University of Gaza, which is now a pile of rubble after Israeli air strikes.

I was late and perched on a seat in the front row. Al-Hassan was sat behind but when he caught my eye, he looked at me knowingly. His expression was friendly. We recognised one another. We had attended a UNRWA school together.

After the lecture, he said it was a “beautiful coincidence” to be studying together. I said I felt like the lucky one. We caught up and reminisced about our childhood.

He was both boisterous and polite. He was brilliant at maths. He loved reading books about animals in the school library during breaks.

He begged me to join him for a spin around Deir el-Balah in his father’s car. I said no at first, I was shy. But Al-Hassan, with all his confidence and excited energy, convinced me.

We discussed our university life and our plans. After finishing his degree, he wanted to study business and eventually work in Oman.

He was his father’s soulmate. He loved to tell stories about his family. He woke up early and loved to watch films, especially documentaries about astronomy. He was a big fan of Liverpool FC and in particular, [the player] Sadio Mane.