Hamilton residents with family in Gaza say they're desperate to help them as airstrikes continue
Riham Alsharif and her family are living a 'nightmare' as she tries to help them escape the war
The last two weeks have felt like years for Hamilton resident Riham Alsharif, whose family in Gaza is stranded with no clean water and dwindling food as airstrikes continue.
Alsharif, who arrived in Hamilton as a refugee in 2016 and is now a Canadian citizen, said her mother, father, aunt, sister and cousin and their combined seven children — all under the age of 10 — fled Gaza City's Rimal neighbourhood, walking 15 kilometres south to Nuseirat Camp in search of safety.
As of last week, they were sheltering in an unfinished building that shakes every time an airstrike hits the area, Alsharif told CBC Hamilton. The children were screaming and crying and her father and mother were without their heart and blood pressure medications.
"I'm not sleeping, all day, all night, I'm trying to reach them," said Alsharif last week, crying. "I feel so bad when I eat anything and my mom and dad are not eating anything. It's a nightmare right now."
Like many Canadians with loved ones in Gaza, she's desperate to help her family, emailing churches and elected officials to see if someone can help get them out of Gaza, either to Egypt or Canada.
"There's no life over there, " she said. "I just want to try to keep them safe."
'We have nothing'
Israeli airstrikes have pounded Gaza since Hamas militants attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing Israeli civilians and taking about 200 hostages into Gaza.
More than 1,400 people in Israel have been killed, according to the Israeli government.
More than 4,137 Palestinians have been killed, Palestinian officials say.
Israeli officials have said they'll continue the attack in Gaza until the hostages are released. Hamas has continued to fire rockets into Israel.
Alsharif's father, Mohammed, a 70-year-old veterinarian, told CBC Hamilton in a phone interview last week that everything around them appears to be destroyed, as far as they can see. He and his family dread each "terrible, terrible" night sleeping on the sandy earth. Without power, they lay in darkness as they hear bombs pummel Gaza.
Food is also running out. His wife waited for hours in line to buy bread at the only store open in the area, Mohammed said in a phone interview. They eat once a day.
"We have nothing," he said. "We want safety. We want a normal life."
430 people seeking Canada's help to leave Gaza
Aid workers have warned Gaza is near complete collapse with decreasing water and medicine supplies and power running out at hospitals.
On Sunday, a convoy of aid trucks entered the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing, heading toward the Gaza Strip, according to Egyptian security and humanitarian sources at Rafah. It was the second humanitarian aid shipment allowed to cross into the territory since Israel cut supplies to Gaza as part of its response to the Hamas attacks.
Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly and Minister of International Development Ahmed Hussen said in a joint statement Sunday the news of the convoy was welcomed but the aid is "a small fraction of what is needed."
On Saturday, Joly said in a statement the Canadian government had helped "nearly 1,600 Canadians, permanent residents and eligible family members as well as foreign nationals leave Israel."
They are also working "around the clock to secure a window for Canadians to exit Gaza," looking at "windows for possible exit at the Rafah border crossing."
Julie Sunday, assistant deputy minister at Global Affairs Canada, told reporters 430 people with ties to Canada are seeking help to leave Gaza.
Hamilton resident fears for parents
Hamilton resident Rani Hemaid is experiencing overwhelming worry for his family in Gaza City. Their neighbourhood was heavily bombed and they tried to escape, he said.
His sister-in-law and five children made it to the south, but as of last week, his parents and grandfather remained stuck in the north, running out of food and water, Hemaid said.
"It's not safe to move, the bombing is everywhere," he said.
His family has been impacted by the wars between Palestinians and Israelis for generations. His grandfather was a child during war in 1948 and was among a large number of Palestinians who fled or were forced out of the area now known as Israel. He never returned to his village, Hamaid said.
During the 2014 Gaza War, Hamaid's brother's house was destroyed. The family built a new home together, but it was totalled during the recent airstrikes, Hamaid said.
Hamaid came to Canada as a refugee in 2016, carrying trauma from past conflicts and looking to build a life without the expectation another war was on the horizon. But now, he said he feels frozen, unable to move forward knowing his family is in danger.
He's looking to not only help them find safety, but also for world leaders to end the conflict.
"Civilians are being killed everywhere and the solution is not dropping more bombs," Hamaid said. "It's immediate ceasefire and peace talks."
Palestinian, Jewish communities hold solidarity events
Residents with family or friends in both Gaza and Israel have come together at separate solidarity events held in Hamilton over the past two weeks.
On Oct. 10, the Hamilton Jewish Federation (HJF) hosted a gathering at the Art Gallery of Hamilton (AGH) to "mourn, pray, show our support for Israelis and share the truth about these heinous actions."
Gustavo Rymberg, CEO of HJF, told CBC Hamilton he has friends in Israel who lost family members and friends because they were "shot in the street" on Oct. 7.
Rymberg told the room at the AGH that night that "heart-wrenching stories seem unceasing. Israel has faced trials before, but this time, it is different."
The Palestinian community and its supporters came together days later.
Last Sunday, a rally was held outside of City Hall, followed by a march through downtown, where demonstrators chanted, "Free, free Palestine."
Nahed Killisly was at the rally with her husband Rami and son Tamer.
A Palestinian refugee living in Canada for 36 years, Killisly said she joined the rally because of the suffering of people back home. "My friends are dying in Gaza. Their kids are dying in Gaza. Everybody's dead or dying," she said.
She said she moved to Hamilton from Lebanon and has never been able to visit the Palestinian territories, where her family is from.
"It's sad, you know? We want our country back. Or at least parts of it," she said.
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With files from CBC News, Thomson Reuters, Cara Nickerson