Emily Conklin

Anas Al-Sharif أنس الشريف @ This is my will and my final message. If these words reach you, know that Israel has succeeded in killing me and silencing my voice. First, peace be upon you and Allah's mercy and blessings. Allah knows I gave every effort and all my strength to be a support and a voice for my people, ever since I opened my eyes to life in the alleys and streets of the Jabalia refugee camp. My hope was that Allah would extend my life so l could return with my family and loved ones to our original town of occupied Asqalan (Al-Majdal). But Allah's will came first, and His decree is final. I have lived through pain in all its details, tasted suffering and loss many times, yet I never once hesitated to convey the truth as it is, without distortion or falsification—so that Allah may bear witness against those who stayed silent, those who accepted our killing, those who choked our breath, and whose hearts were unmoved by the scattered remains of our children and women, doing nothing to stop the massacre that our people have faced for more than a year and a half.

I entrust you with Palestine—the jewel in the crown of the Muslim world, the heartbeat of every free person in this world. I entrust you with its people, with its wronged and innocent children who never had the time to dream or live in safety and peace. Their pure bodies were crushed under thousands of tons of Israeli bombs and missiles, torn apart and scattered across the walls. I urge you not to let chains silence you, nor borders restrain you. Be bridges toward the liberation of the land and its people, until the sun of dignity and freedom rises over our stolen homeland. I entrust you to take care of my family. I entrust you with my beloved daughter Sham, the light of my eyes, whom I never got the chance to watch grow up as I had dreamed. I entrust you with my dear son Salah, whom I had wished to support and accompany through life until he grew strong enough to carry my burden and continue the mission.

I entrust you with my beloved mother, whose blessed prayers brought me to where l am, whose supplications were my fortress and whose light guided my path. I pray that Allah grants her strength and rewards her on my behalf with the best of rewards. I also entrust you with my lifelong companion, my beloved wife, Umm Salah (Bayan), from whom the war separated me for many long days and months. Yet she remained faithful to our bond, steadfast as the trunk of an olive tree that does not bend-patient, trusting in Allah, and carrying the responsibility in my absence with all her strength and faith. I urge you to stand by them, to be their support after Allah Almighty. If I die, I die steadfast upon my principles. I testify before Allah that I am content with His decree, certain of meeting Him, and assured that what is with Allah is better and everlasting.

O Allah, accept me among the martyrs, forgive my past and future sins, and make my blood a light that illuminates the path of freedom for my people and my family. Forgive me if I have fallen short, and pray for me with mercy, for I kept my promise and never changed or betrayed it. Do not forget Gaza... And do not forget me in your sincere prayers for forgiveness and acceptance. Anas Jamal Al-Sharif 06.04.2025 This is what our beloved Anas requested to be published upon his martyrdom. 3:25 PM • 8/10/25 • 675K Views

The final statement by Al Jazeera journalist Anas al-Sharif, written months ago in anticipation of his likely death, posted on Twitter/X by a friend. Israel assassinated him tonight along with his reporting team in an airstrike in Gaza.

We are finally hearing firsthand what happened at CECOT.

At least 277 people illegally rendered from the US remain there, and President Trump is now talking about sending American citizens there.

Do not let this slip from view.

Absolutely no notes. Thanks for sharing AND promoting abortion funds!

Are you for real 😱😱😱

ICE is behaving as if it is an unaccountable secret police. Proving they’re accountable has to be the top priority of Democrats and states everywhere.

💀💀💀
I’m asking for this at my next appointment.

This one was especially fun, and one I actually know about! 🤣

OMG YES! We just saw Big Freedia at Newport Folk Fest and it was absolutely incredible. So glad to have seen her and all the collaborators she brought out! Definitely made me a fan.

Everybody needs to call this what it is: extortion

I think my favorite are the lighter, illegible letters by Maryland

An absolutely ridiculous AI generated map zoomed in on New England and the mid Atlantic that has combined RI and CT and has no labels on VT, NH, MA, or the RI/CT hybrid. The rest of the states are labeled but they are just nonsense garbage names.

I mean where’s the lie.

Seems right.

Call the House Appropriations subcommittee now: DEMAND NO CUTS to NSF funding in the 2026 Budget Tell the Congressional members of the House Appropriations subcommittee for Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies: NO CUTS to NSF funding in the 2026 Budget!

🚨ACTION OF THE DAY🚨
@standupforscience.bsky.social
Day 7!

🚨URGENT🚨
Call RFK & say NO to cancelling $500m in mRNA vaccine development.

Put in your info, you will receive a call immediately after.
We’ve got a script for you to follow for your call!
#31Days
act.standupforscience.net/call_campaig...

🤣🤣 you give me too much credit

My amazing co-commissioner speaks before me at ~31min into the meeting and I speak and about ~43min. If you’re watching and wonder what the chuckles are in the beginning of Andy’s portion, I pretended to want to testify first. I treat every mic opportunity like it’s standup, unfortunately.

Recommend watching if you are interested in the dynamics of our City Council, the ideas for how to change volunteer engagement and/or seeing me try to speak eloquently on matters I find frustrating.

The recording of last night’s board & commissions workshop with #NewportRI #CityCouncil is up: cityofnewport.granicus.com/player/clip/...
I absolutely never sit in full view of the gallery camera, as @savanaish.bsky.social can attest, but you can see me the whole time here.

No but actually. What’s the reward here? Bad visibility and poor favorability ratings? Ok.

Isn’t it fun? The men in power of our state and country either actively taking services or letting them shrink and seeing people suffer. We can’t solve every problem, sure, but why run for office if you aren’t going to fight for communities?

Why would we want a transit enthusiast on the board of a transit authority? Definitely preferable to have a vacancy.

Wow. Very cool 🙄🙄

This really feels like a defining post of our time

This guy. Constantly failing to do the bare minimum.

Thank you to Councilors Smyth & Pinnock for bringing this forward and embracing creativity in potential improvements to boards & commissions that are and could be vital to the operation of the City. @queenpep43.bsky.social

It’s our job, I think, to make things easier for folks who come next. If we make a more consistent, transparent application process and standardized operating mechanism for commissions then less time will be spent in learning operations and more can be spent on the work.

We can’t improve participation in city infrastructure without critique of that infrastructure and its accessibility. I’m proud to be on a commission and I think we’ve done good work, but I’m also very cognizant of the hurdles we’ve faced. And I know we’re not the only ones.

Not doing a real live posting of this but really interesting to see those who think there are no existing problems vs. those who think the process can be improved. That’s really what this is - not a story of blame or critique, but seeing an opportunity for betterment.

Councilor Ceglie is coming across as defensive, saying this is abdicating Council responsibility since the B&C are liaison to the Council, and if there are issues with their mission or capacity, then those should be directed to the staff.

Ceglie agrees, saying that she has been on commissions and never had any issues knowing what to do - she just went to the chair- and doesn’t want folks being told what to do, which is how this comes across. Says we have too many boards and should combine some of them.

Councilor Napolitano and Ceglie voice concerns over this structure, saying they have not heard the issues that Councilor Smyth has raised. Napolitano also says this is a long list that should be divided among staff members, not addressed by a single person.