Caught amidst the thrumming heartbeats of the ongoing conflict in Gaza are Naila and Talal El-Deeb, a British-Palestinian couple from London. Violence rained down, tearing through the serenity of their family visit when Hamas conducted an attack on Israel. Their son, Mo El-Deeb, claims the UK government has made sparse efforts to liberate them from their terrifying predicament.
The couple’s frantic attempts to escape through Egypt were abruptly halted by a nearby Israeli jet strike at the border. A desperate truth echoes through their son’s words from his home in Marylebone, central London, “they’re stuck. We’ve tried every angle; there’s no roadmap for them to flee Gaza.”
While encapsulated in their current locale, Mrs. El-Deeb suffered a stroke. Directed towards the Egyptian border for evacuation based on a curated list, they instead found massive crowds in their path. Amid this chaos, disaster loomed when a strike pulverized a nearby building.
The border post was subsequently shut down for an unspecified duration, leaving the couple in a precarious state, living in darkness, devoid of electricity. The advice offered by the British Embassy was to heed the recommendations found on the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office’s (FCDO) website. The primary recommendation was a pragmatic one – confirming the status of the Rafah crossing into Egypt before setting out.
Cooped up and surrounded by explosive soundscapes, frustration emanates from Mo’s voice. Despite announcements from the UK government about evacuation flights for nationals stranded in Israel, the harsh reality for his parents, and others like them, is their inability to cross the Israel border. “Nobody seems to know,” he expressed, the anxiety apparent in his tone.
With the ceaseless tremors of Israeli airstrikes a constant fear for his family, fellow Londoner Saleem Lubbad shares in Mo’s distress. Losing several family members to the bombing seared newfound urgency into his pleas for support. Mr. Lubbad’s despair is palpable as he expresses concern for his brothers and their children, who have been displaced multiple times due to Israeli military jets.
Assurances by a Foreign Office spokesperson ring hollow amidst their turmoil. Reiterating the government’s priority for the safety of all British nationals and their efforts for facilitating commercial flights and maintaining the Rafah border crossing, provides little solace for those stranded in the war zone. Indeed, their words become the faintest whispers against the deafening crescendo of conflict.
