Help Farouk who saved three young siblings

Dear community.

This is Tolomeo reaching out to you from the Netherlands, with some wonderful news.

And a request.

First, the news that we've all been waiting for:

Sally, Ahmed and Sila are safe!

These three children were safely transported from Gaza to Egypt at the end of February, and are in the care of Farouk’s adult half-sister. Sally has been treated in a hospital. Farouk’s messages:

“When I was talking to you a lot in the morning, busy arranging them to travel. Today, Sally also underwent a full medical examination. A laser operation will take place in her kidney, but her hand needs surgery. It was examined by a very skilled doctor.”

Sally has now undergone hand surgery and is in recovery.

See these sweet children—now ages 2, 4, and 6—lived through this war and made it out.

So thank you all for helping to make this happen. These children are safe because you all pitched in to help them. In a world that seems more painful every day, we got to participate in making it less so for one family.

I ask you now to think about my friend Farouk Abdel Fattah Latif. (who was blocked from entering Egypt, due to being an adult).

I ask you to think about kind of 24 year old man would care selflessly for a baby, a toddler and a young child through 400 days of war, doing everything in his power to make sure they had clothing, nourishment, and medicine. Even when he did not have enough clothes to keep him warm, or food to keep him full. The only reason they survived is because of the love, willpower, strength and dedication of their big brother.

Now he needs our help.

The travel company that brought Sila, Sally and Ahmed to Egypt says that they anticipate the border opening up again in May.

Because of the recent block against bringing aid into Gaza, the prices for food are even higher than during the war. Farouk is anticipating needing an additional €4000 at a bare minimum in order to pay for food (and basic energy to charge a cell phone) until the next border opening. So I have reduced the campaign total to €8000. The €3,931 we originally fundraised helped pay for the children's evacuation expenses (sent through GoFundMe to my bank account in the Netherlands, then sent to Farouk directly via money transfer).

Please help my friend make it through. He is a good-hearted person who would give his life for his family. He single-handedly saved his three orphan siblings from starvation and death in Gaza, at great personal expense.

He is a good community member, who just wants to finish his education, work, and have a peaceful life.

Can you help him do that?

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[original campaign text below]

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Hi, my name is Tolomeo and I'm fundraising on behalf of Farouk, a kind young man orphaned with his siblings, seeking a way out to safety across the border to Egypt.

His sister Sally is 5, my daughter's age, and suffering from a kidney disease due to the contaminated water. As the days pass, it gets worse and worse.

Ahmed is 3-years old and Sila, still a baby. Both have skin diseases from drinking the water.

Farouk is only 24 and caring for 3 young orphans. His other sister, 6-years old, was killed in a bomb this year. They did not find a single piece of her to bury. Farouk's knees are injured, and together with his siblings they have barely enough canned food to eat 3 days per week.

They have been corralled into an area near Deir al-Balah.

Sally has kidney disease and needs urgent surgery. Every day her condition is deteriorating.

Farouk is in contact with a relative in Egypt who knows an organization that will take care of Sally’s medical treatment.

As of November 2024, there are *still* official companies that coordinate with Egypt and transport P.al.est.inians over the border, for a fee. Even before the war, this same service existed ($1000 for each adult), but now that people are desparate to flee, these companies have hiked up their fees. $8,000 for a rush evacuation for an adult, $5,000 for a normal evacuation for an adult, $2500 for each child. In order to move their whole family across the border to Egypt Farouk needs $12,500. ($5000 for Farouk, $2500 for Sally, $2500 for Sila, $2500 for Ahmed.)

After we fundraise the money, Farouk will go to the office (specializing in coordinating the transfer of people with critical medical needs that need treatment abroad), and he will pay them the fees. After that, the company coordinates with the Egyptians and the Is.ra.el.is by creating an agreement over the requested transfer, and granting permission for that person to leave.

My campaign is in euros. Today the exchange rate says €11,512 for $12,500, but it fluctuates. And in the meantime, food and clothing costs are exhorbitant. A container of milk for the baby costs $80. Farouk has no way to make money in the camp to support his siblings. But he will move mountains to care for his family.

You can help them live. They deserve to live.