This Palestinian mother lost her husband, daughter in Gaza — and now cares for a son in Egypt

Eman Abd El-Ghaffour, a Palestinian mother of five, feels lucky to have fled the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. 

But now, in the relative shelter of Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, she can only reflect on what she has lost.

"This is my fate and I accept it. We were one family, but then the war happened and we were divided. Some died and some were injured. I cannot complain. I always thank God for my fate," said the 36-year-old housewife in an interview. 

Abd El-Ghaffour has struggled to find tranquillity in her new surroundings. 

"Even though my son is with me in Egypt now, how can I forget my beautiful daughter Lara? She was nine years old. She was killed by an airstrike last week," she said, referring to an Israeli bombardment that hit her house in southern Gaza.

The bombing also killed her husband, Salah Al-Sattri. Three of her other children sustained only minor injuries, but her 17-year-old son Mohannad was maimed. Rubble fell on his face, leading to severe damage to his nose and jaw.

In the immediate aftermath, Abd El-Ghaffour took Mohannad to an intensive care facility at Nasser hospital in Khan Younis, where a doctor stitched up some of his wounds without anesthetic, because none was available at the time. 

Further complicating the situation is that Mohannad has been diagnosed with cerebral palsy. From a young age, the condition has affected his mobility. He mostly uses a walking aid or wheelchair.

"His speech is also weak," said Abd El-Ghaffour. "I understand him, but strangers don't."

While she waited to hear of her son's fate at Nasser hospital after her home was destroyed, someone told her she could try to travel to Egypt. In a state of despair and disbelief, she registered their names for a transfer.

"I didn't think we would leave. I thought they were lying to me. I feel like I'm in a dream. It's a miracle that we were able to leave Gaza," Abd El-Ghaffour said.

A dangerous place for children

After Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 people, Israel responded with a military bombardment that has killed more than 14,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. The United Nations has reported that 40 per cent of the dead were children, leading UNICEF executive director Catherine Russell to describe Gaza as "the world's most dangerous place to be a child."

Known to many as a "life passage," the Rafah border crossing in Egypt is the only possible exit for Gazans trapped in the besieged enclave.

Since the situation escalated in Gaza, only specific groups — such as foreign nationals, Palestinians with foreign passports or first-degree relatives of a foreign national — could cross from Gaza into Egypt.

Severely injured Palestinians or critical cases, however, were exceptions. (For example, a group of 28 premature babies were evacuated from Al Shifa Hospital in Gaza and taken to Egypt for urgent treatment last week.)

According to a source from the Cairo Press Center, 2,700 people crossed from Gaza into Egypt between Oct. 21 and Nov. 13, including 150 injured Palestinians. That includes Abd El-Ghaffour and her teenage son.

She said the journey from Gaza to Egypt's Sinai region was perilous. In addition to his mobility issues, during the trip from Nasser hospital in Gaza to Al Arish hospital in Sinai, Mohannad had trouble breathing and was provided an oxygen mask.

"If he had still been in Gaza, he would have been dead, because there is a shortage in supplies there," Abd El-Ghaffour said.

Dr. Wagdy Amin, who works at Al Arish hospital, reported that 72 injured Palestinians were admitted during the first two weeks of November. He emphasized the complexity of many cases.

"The injured cases come straight into the emergency room here after the ambulance crosses the Gaza border. There are many kinds of injuries: liver-related, fractures, nervous system, gastrointestinal tract," Wagdy said. "Many complicated cases have come here."

Thoughts of home

Given the shortage of vital medical supplies in Gaza, Mohannad is very fortunate to be receiving treatment in Egypt. But there are other things weighing on his mother's mind.

Amid a telecommunications blackout in much of Gaza, she expressed concern for her other children, who she had to leave behind in order to save Mohannad. 

"I cannot reach my children. They could be dead any time. Mohamed is three, Tala is 11 and Dima is 13," Abd El-Ghaffour said. "I wish this genocide would stop. I wish I could go back to my country."

UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres has warned that Gaza is "becoming a graveyard for children." In addition to the already high number of children killed there, the UN estimates up to 1,500 kids are still missing.

Abd El-Ghaffour's story encapsulates a broader tragedy unfolding in Gaza — a place where many mothers must confront the harsh realities of conflict, displacement and loss.

In a recent statement, Sima Sami Bahous, executive director of the organization UN Women, said "women in Gaza have told us that they pray for peace, but that if peace does not come, they pray for a quick death, in their sleep, with their children in their arms."

Before the current Israel-Hamas war, Abd El-Ghaffour spent her time caring for her five children and ensuring they got a solid education. The conflict changed everything. 

Since her house was destroyed, her daughter and husband were killed and the family was separated, her priorities have shifted to ensuring Mohannad's recovery in Egypt.

But her heart is still in Gaza. 

"Lara loved school. Lara liked to play with other children," Ghaffour said. "Now she is a martyr."