Her bedroom in Ballaghaderreen has been ready for her arrival since her Irish visa was granted in February but Najwa Alsabbagh (74) remains trapped in northern Gaza under deadly bombardment.
Her daughter, Sherin Alsabbagh, an Irish citizen, says “time is running out” and she is willing to pay whatever it costs to get her mother out and bring her to Ireland, to live with her in the Co Roscommon town.
“It is an emergency,” Sherin says. “Time is really against us. It has been reported that Netanyahu wants to empty the north of Gaza and cut off all the food and aid. My mother has already lost about 20 kilos.”
Sherin says that her mother has “one meal, or less, of rice or bread a day − nothing nutritious; no eggs or vegetables. She had surgery on her back before the invasion and was on pills for high blood pressure but there is no medication available now.
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Her mother has lost “almost 200 family members – a sister, sisters-in-law, nieces, nephews, cousins with their wives and their children”.
‘It’s been five months and the situation is not getting any better. If I could get my mother on that evacuation list, I would pay for her flight, whatever it is going to cost to get her here’
— Sherin Alsabbagh
“She is 74 years of age but she has to run for safety like a mad woman through the streets, through dead bodies,” says Sherin.
In a phone call yesterday, Najwa told her daughter that she is living in constant terror.
“The air strikes and the bombardment are everywhere. They don’t discriminate. They bomb without warning,” she said.
“I am terrified I will be killed. They have cut off all the aid. No food is allowed to get into the northern part of Gaza. We suffer from the lack of food,” Najwa told Sherin on the call.
“Our house is not safe because the walls have been destroyed by previous air strikes. They want to leave us with no choice but to leave and go to southern Gaza.”
[ Humanitarian crisis in Gaza deepens as hospital calls for assistanceOpens in new window ]
The Department of Foreign Affairs informed Sherin in early February that her mother had been approved for entry to Ireland, subject to Israel agreeing to let her leave Gaza.
Sherin moved to Ireland on an Irish Aid scholarship in 2008 to study for a master’s degree in development studies, and became a citizen two years ago. She signed an undertaking to accommodate Najwa at her home in Ballaghaderreen where she works with refugees for the Galway Roscommon Education Training Board.
Sherin’s brother, his wife and their four children, who live with Najwa, were refused visas. Sherin has two other brothers and a sister living in Sweden.
“The plan was that my mother would leave through the Rafah crossing into Egypt and somebody from the Irish Embassy in Cairo would meet her there, give her the visa and put her on a plane to come here,” she says.
In May, Sherin was informed that the Israeli authorities had agreed to allow Najwa to leave but, by then, the Rafah border crossing had been closed.
The Erez crossing, closer to the Alsabbaghs’ home in the northern region, had previously been closed and only reopened for aid deliveries. According to the United Nations, no food has entered Gaza in the past two weeks.
Sherin, whose father died four years ago, has written to the Taoiseach, the Tánaiste and the Minister for Health asking that her mother’s name be added to a list of 30 sick children approved by the Cabinet for evacuation for medical treatment in Ireland. She has received no substantive reply.
“I’m so lucky that the Irish Government is granting my mother a visa but it’s taking a long time,” she says.
“It’s been five months and the situation is not getting any better. If I could get my mother on that evacuation list, I would pay for her flight, whatever it is going to cost to get her here.”
Najwa lives near Al-Shifa Hospital, Gaza’s biggest medical facility which has been repeatedly attacked by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) since November. A siege of the hospital in March reportedly “destroyed” numerous neighbouring homes.
“My family were trapped in the house for 10 days because the tanks were outside. Three whole neighbours’ families across the road were wiped out. They are still under the rubble,” Sherin says.
“My mother keeps saying her prayers that, if she is killed, she will be buried and not be eaten by stray dogs. About three weeks ago, she said to me: ‘I hate seeing myself in this situation. That’s it – I don’t want to get out.’ It was suicidal talk.”
The Hamas-controlled health ministry said on Monday that at least 42,289 Palestinians had been killed and 98,684 injured since last October.
“My mother is an educated woman. She used to be a teacher. She raised and educated five children with my father. They worked very hard to give us a future. They taught us to be strong and to be good and kind. We’re not against Israel. We’re not with Hamas. We are peaceful people,” she says.
“I’m really grateful that the Irish Government are helping my mother by granting her a visa and allowing her to come and live with me here but I want them to speed it up.
“Time is running out for me and my mother. If she stays there, she will die.”
A spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs said that it was aware of Najwa Alsabbagh’s case and that it has provided advice to her family.
“The Israeli military operation in Rafah has resulted in the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt being closed at present,” the spokesperson said.
“It is now five months since any civilians have been allowed to depart.”
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