Help my family survive in Gaza

Hi. I’m Tahani, a Palestinian translator from Gaza, based in the UK, and I’m fundraising to help the remaining members of my immediate family survive in Gaza.

On June 9th, my family’s house in the middle area of the Gaza Strip was targeted by an Israeli airstrike, murdering my father, mother and sister, and wounding my niece and nephew. Before that day, my family was like all Palestinians in Gaza, living under relentless bombardment, and struggling to secure the essentials of life.

My father, Jamal, was a hardworking handyman and gardener. He was loved by everyone in the neighbourhood; he spared no time or effort to help those in need even when he couldn’t afford it. He also loved taking care of his own front yard, olive trees, palm trees and his lemon tree under which he used to spend his time playing with and swinging his grandchildren.

My mother, Halimah, was a housewife. In November, she fell and broke her ankle while running from a heavy nearby bombing. Her ankle wasn’t healing because of her worsening diabetes, and she was at risk of losing her foot in the absence of adequate medical care due to the limited capabilities of the hospital. In January, she got a medical referral to Egypt, but she refused to leave. She was worried if she left Gaza, she wouldn’t be allowed to go back to her family and home again. She was a refugee herself, forcibly displaced by Israeli forces in 1967, along with her family, who were also displaced in 1948 and were never allowed to go back to their home in Sarafand al-'Amar.

My sister, Muna, was the joy and laughter that filled our home. She radiated love and kindness everywhere she went. Muna was a social worker, volunteering at the displacement shelter schools to help the chronically ill and children with PTSD. Before the genocide, Muna used to give tutoring lessons to primary school children, sometimes free of charge to those who couldn’t afford it. She loved children and always wished to have some of her own, but that dream of hers never came true.

Now, I only have my three brothers and their small families left. My brothers are all married with children. Abdulrahman is a graphic designer, Hamada is a web developer, and Muhammed is an internet installer and technician. They have always worked hard to provide for their families, living paycheck to paycheck. Since the genocide started, they lost their sources of income, and 2 months ago they also lost the 3-story family house they spent 9 years building. They are all displaced now, in different places, and every single detail of their life is a strain.

They spend hours everyday queuing in the heat to secure water and food. They are struggling to keep their kids safe from the infectious diseases, which broke out due to the destruction of waste management infrastructure as well as water and sanitation systems. I have 3 nephews and 4 nieces: Reema, 6.5 years old; Taj, 3 years old; Ameer, 16 months old; Janna and Zakariya, 4 months old; and Mariam and Yahia, 2 years old. Yahia was seriously wounded in the airstrike that killed my parents and sister. His lower legs were covered in deep second-degree burns, his clavicle got fractured and his head injury caused a long-term damage affecting his eyes. Mariam’s head injury caused severe damage to her arm; she is no longer able to control its movement. Since being pulled out from under the rubble, Taj has been shaking on and off and stuttering constantly.

Due to the ongoing blockade and the shortage of humanitarian supplies, the prices in Gaza have skyrocketed. One small pack of diapers is $25, one small pack of baby formula is $20, vegetables and hygiene products are very costly which makes them nearly impossible to afford. It has been 10 months since the beginning of this unspeakable horror, there seems to be no end for this genocide in the near future, and nobody knows how long thousands of families including my own will be without homes. My family wants to survive, but they can’t carry on without your support. The money from this fundraiser will be spent on life-sustaining essentials: water, food, medicine, rent, clothes, baby formula, diapers, hygiene products, and Reema’s home schooling, for as long as this genocide continues and until my brothers are able to secure a source of income and a home.

With deep gratitude,

Tahani