Help Omar and Naji their family to evacuate GAZA

Dear compassionate supporters,

I extend my heartfelt plea to you, driven by the urgency of the dire situation my family faces in the chaos of Gaza, a war-torn region. My name in Naji Abukhaled, 31 years old and a Palestinian from Gaza.

I currently reside in Belgium, I have Belgian nationality.

Right now I have 7 immediate family members in Gaza, my mother and my father and two brothers and my sister in law and their children Omar 6 years old and Naji 5 years old.

I am starting a fundraiser to save the lives of my immediate family members.

Whenever I have a chance to sleep, I wake up right away to see if my family is still alive, but it is hard to tell right away due to the current situation where there is no electricity, connection, fuel, water or food, which has targeted civilians, they're struggling right now, and genocides are happening in Gaza every day.

Before the war, Omar and Naji lived with their parents, Reem and Zakaria. Their uncle, Ahmed, and their grandparents lived in another apartment in the same building. Omar was in first primary school and Naji in kindergarten. Life was already difficult. Only Ahmed had a job, in a bakery.

Their injured father

One day, while Zakaria, the father, is in the street, a neighboring building is bombed. Zakaria has a serious back injury. He can no longer walk. But it is impossible to reach a hospital!

Omar and Naji's building is also affected. There are no more doors, windows... But the family remains: it is impossible to leave, on foot, because of Zakaria's injury. However, the entire neighborhood is destroyed. The only building still standing is theirs! Israeli tanks are approaching. The threat is growing.

Finally, a friend finds a wheelchair for the children's father! On November 9, the whole family fled on foot, without taking anything. The children, their parents, their uncle and their grandparents walk 20 km to go to a cousin's house in an old refugee camp. They all live in one room. It was high time: two days after their departure, their building was completely destroyed!

On a football field

Unfortunately, the respite is short-lived. The Israelis begin to attack the neighborhood where they are refugees! The family flees again. 5 km walk to a football field. There, they must pay 500 dollars (one and a half months' salary) to receive enough to build a makeshift tent. They buy four mattresses to put on the floor. They share them to sleep, at night or during the day.

Since then, it’s been survival. You have to pay for everything: a little wood to bake thyme bread, the only food possible. There is no more drinking water. So, they have to drink water that is unfit for consumption, at the risk of getting sick... when they find water and can buy it. Clothes and blankets are very expensive, if you can find them. But it's raining and it's cold.

The bombings continue, the Israeli soldiers are still there. Omar and Naji are very scared, like everyone else. They would like to be able to leave the Gaza Strip.

In order to facilitate my family's evacuation from Egypt , I'm setting up a GoFundMe campaign to raise €42,000. Here is the breakdown of the funds:

- €42,000

Has to be allocated to cover the expenses associated with obtaining permits to leave Gaza, as well as crossing fees at Rafah, at the Egypt-Gaza border. This amount breaks down to €6,000 per person.(7person).

I have to pay €6,000 per family member to the Hala office for Tourism Advice and Services in Egypt for a normal departure from Palestine.

Then Hala office ensures that my family leaves Gaza, they have to pay to leave Gaza.

Why do I have to pay €6,000 per family member?

Please read this >> (Palestinians desperate to flee Gaza pay thousands in bribes to ‘brokers’)

https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2024/jan/08/palestinians-flee-gaza-rafah-egypt-border-bribes-to-brokers

Any donation, no matter how small, will make a significant difference to the safety of my family. We'll use the money raised in a transparent and efficient way to make sure every dollar goes to keeping them safe.

Thanks for your support, and I'm grateful for any help you can give during this difficult time.

La vie d’Omar et Naji deux enfants à Gaza