Prince Albert, Sask., man relieved after wife and kids make it safely out of Gaza
Man wants ceasefire to save extended family members still in Gaza
Abdullah Algherbawi is finally relieved after weeks of sleepless nights. His family, who were stuck in Gaza amidst the ongoing war, have made it to safety in Egypt.
Algherbawi said his wife, Sabreen Algherbawi, and their four children aged four, nine, 11 and 13, were in Gaza, desperately trying to stay a step ahead of airstrikes, before making it across the border on Sunday. They are set to rejoin him in Saskatchewan next week.
"I'm really happy that my family is safe now. But I'm still worried about my big family, my brothers, my sisters, my nephew. My people, they still need help," he said Tuesday.
Abdullah and his family are originally from Palestinian territory, but now live in Prince Albert, Sask. They travelled back in July to visit family. It was their first time returning since becoming Canadian citizens.
When Abdullah returned to Canada in late August for work, Sabreen and the kids stayed behind. That was before Oct. 7, when Hamas militia attacked Israel.
Abdullah said his wife and kids moved around seven times from one house to another, to a shelter and then a school in pursuit of safety.
"My wife went to the border like five times, and every time she went there she stayed with the kids for a whole day from the morning until 5 p.m. She's waiting in case they open it and finally they made it to safety in Egypt now."
Sabreen said the journey to Egypt was tiresome but worth the trouble.
"It was a very long and hard trip. We waited for long hours but we are in good health," Sabreen told CBC News in Cairo.
Sabreen said they only stayed two nights in the family home in Gaza once the war started. A house near theirs was bombed, she said.
"We were so scared. At night, we thought where should we go? Every place is destroyed," she said, noting even safe spaces like hospitals and mosques were under warnings.
"My sister [works] at Shifa Hospital in Gaza. The situation there is very hard and they are not safe."
Abdullah said his immediate family escaping is a huge relief.
"Especially the last two weeks, I'm really having a hard and tough time to sleep. Finally when I made sure that they are safe and OK, at least I relaxed and I got a chance to sleep well," he said.
He said the war has traumatized his kids, especially his youngest.
"Imagine my four-year-old knows the meaning of bomb. She heard the Arabic word for bomb at least a thousand times last month."
However, the safety and well-being of Abdullah's other family members still linger in his mind. Two of his relatives have already died in the current war, and there are hundreds more still there, he said.
"[They] are still alive but we don't know what's going to happen in the future."
He said an already dire situation is worsening, with an ongoing shortage of food and drinking water.
"God was helping them as rain came in. Imagine people waiting for the rain to come to drink water. It's hard situation there," Abdullah said.
Many of his relatives are north of Gaza and he has had no contact with them in recent days, he said.
"I think everybody in the world should stand for a ceasefire and an end to this situation. They are humans."
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