Hello everybody, assalamu alaikum, peace be upon all of you.

Seven years ago today, the world lost a voice that could never be silenced—my friend Jamal Khashoggi. Jamal was not only a great journalist; he was a seeker of freedom, a defender of democracy, and a courageous witness for those who had no voice. His brutal and horrific murder inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul must never be forgotten.

We must continue to strive for justice for his killers and to uphold the values and ideals for which he lived and died: freedom, justice, and democracy for the Arab world.

Dear sisters and brothers, 
As a Nobel Peace Prize laureate and a proud member of DAWN’s board, I have dedicated my life to fighting for freedom and justice, even in the darkest times. Yet tonight, I stand more deeply shocked and angry than ever before, because of what we have witnessed over the past two years.

We are living through a moment when genocide unfolds before our very eyes in Gaza. When ethnic cleansing is broadcast live, and yet much of the world remains silent. The United States continues to supply the very weapons used to kill Palestinian people—children, women, and men—while at the same time claiming to champion human rights.

On the other hand, dictators in our region do not act alone. They are empowered, armed, and protected by the United States. This is exactly what our founder, Jamal Khashoggi, envisioned when he created DAWN: an organization that would courageously challenge U.S. support for abusive regimes.

He created DAWN, an organization that courageously challenged U.S. support for abusive regimes. His mission lives on through our relentless fight to end American complicity in genocide, apartheid, and occupation in Palestine. When institutions fail, when powerful governments become complicit in atrocities, organizations like DAWN stand as the last line of defense for human rights and accountability.

I'm so proud that Dawn courageously was the first to call the devastation in Gaza by its real name: genocide. They have also pursued accountability when the international community refused to act, submitting cases to the International Criminal Court against American officials who aided Israeli war crimes.

So, for the sake of our shared humanity, for the sake of global peace and security, we must work tirelessly to hold Benjamin Netanyahu and other war criminals accountable. Just as important, we must also hold the United States accountable for its support of oppression and occupation in our region.

Dear friends,
As a Yemeni still struggling for freedom, dignity, and democracy in my homeland, I cannot remain silent about the atrocities my people endure.

On one side, we face the brutal operations of the Houthi militia, backed by Iran. On the other, the devastating intervention and guardianship imposed by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. I also strongly condemn the Israeli aggression against my country, Yemen—destroying our resources and ports, bombing our cities, and killing innocent civilians.

Dear friends,
Let us honor Jamal Khashoggi not merely with words, but with movements. Let us carry forward the values for which he gave his life, and let us promise him, here and now, to carry his dream: a democratic, dignified, and free Arab world.

Thank you.