Fundraising appeal launched by Inverness doctor raises £111k to get family out of Gaza
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A fundraising appeal launched by an Inverness hospital consultant in a desperate bid to evacuate family members from war-torn Gaza has raised almost £111,000.
Dr Salim Ghayyda, a paediatric consultant at Raigmore Hospital, launched his online appeal in January after family members, including his elderly parents and young children, were caught up in the intensifying Israel-Hamas war.
So far, eight family members have managed to reach safety in Egypt but 24 remain trapped in the Gaza strip, amid a humanitarian crisis, after Israel closed the border crossing at Rafah.
Dr Ghayyda, a British Palestinian who has lived and worked in the UK for 21 years, thanked people for their support, generosity and compassion.
“I have no words to express my gratitude to all of you,” he stated on the GoFundMe appeal website.
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Dr Ghayyda said it been emotionally one of the hardest choices a son and brother could go through, being made to choose which member of his family to save from death and who to leave behind.
“All of you, with your hearts, minds and sometimes tears, have been through this unimaginable journey with me, and together have now made it possible to fund almost all my 24 family members to evacuate Gaza, once the Rafah crossing re-opens,” he said
Initially, he set a fundraising target of £100,000 but has revised that upwards to £120,000 as he felt after paying for commission and currency conversion, it would still fall short to fund one section of his family.
“I can reassure you every penny will be used to evacuate them but also any ongoing donations would be of great help to support my own efforts to send them money to survive - for food, water, health care, rent etc,” he said.
Dr Ghayyda, who was born and grew up in Gaza, has five brothers and three sisters whose occupations include accountants, a nurse, a radiographer, a primary school teacher and a personal assistant.
Their father Nabil, who has health problems, is 85 and their mother, Dalal, is 75.
In previous interviews with the Inverness Courier, Dr Ghayyda has described the appalling living conditions endured by his family and other Palestinians since the war started in October.
His family were forced to uproot numerous times with no running water and the bare minimum of access to food or minimum basic needs.
Many found themselves living in self-built tents near Rafah while the toilet was a hole in the ground screened by a tarpaulin.
His 18-month-old niece had to remain in the north of Gaza with his brother and her mum as the youngster had been too unwell to travel when the rest of the family evacuated. Consequently, she had to eat animal feed and foraged weeds due to a lack of food.
Last month, Dr Ghayyda had an emotional reunion in Egypt with his parents, a sister and a nephew after they were allowed to cross the border.
Since then, other family members, including a five-year-old nephew and two-year-old niece, were able to leave Gaza before the border closed and remain safe in Egypt, recovering from their traumas.
He said it was “horrible” being forced to make a decision about which family members could leave the Gaza Strip and which would stay.
“I’m not god, I’m not a superpower, I’m only a human, I’m only a son, I’m only a brother, and I was made to make this decision about who lives and who doesn’t live, and it’s awful,” he said.
