A Palestinian-Scottish couple embarked on Thursday, July 10, on a trip of solidarity with people in Gaza, traveling across Europe and the Middle East with a van-load of urgently-needed medical aid to deliver it in the besieged Palestinian strip.
“Medical supplies are very difficult to get in Gaza, and so I felt it would be the most helpful thing we could do,” Khalil Al-Niss told the Edinburg Evening News, hours before starting his trip with his wife, Linda Willis.
Khalil, originally from occupied east Jerusalem (Al-Quds), and his wife Linda took off with their precious cargo from the Scottish Parliament in central Edinburg.
They will take a van loaded with 1.5 tons of medical supplies, donated by groups across Scotland, to Gaza, where critical shortages of all medical supplies are causing pain and immense suffering.
The five-day journey will see them travel through mainland Europe and the Middle East before arriving at the Rafah Crossing, on the border of Egypt and Gaza, next on Tuesday, July 15.
The cargo includes much-needed medication for heart conditions and diabetes, as well as syringes, bandages, swabs, antibiotics, blood bottles for taking samples, and more advanced equipment for use in surgery.
Linda, who works as a nurse, says the idea was the brain child of her husband.
“He came up with the idea of delivering medicine, and I know it is something that is badly needed out there,” she says
“I imagine it will be a very humbling experience to see what conditions are like out there.”
Israel has been closing the Gaza Strip’s exits to the outside world since Hamas took control of the territory in June 2007.
With the lack of fuel supplies and drugs, most medical equipment was left standing idle and patients of chronic diseases resigning themselves to death.
Many international human rights groups accuse Israel of pursuing a policy of collective punishment against Gaza’s 1.6 million residents.
Supported
Khalil, a delivery driver by trade, is using in the trip his own van that he recently purchased to help with his work.
His spirit was echoed by groups and individuals from all walks of life in Scotland.
“We have been amazed at the response from everyone here,” Khalil says.
“We have received so many supplies that we literally cannot fit them all in the van, so the rest will be taken out by another group.”
Khalil’s van has been packed with medical supplies donated by charitable organizations from across Scotland.
The couple has been helped in their campaign by the Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign, a group of activists who aim to educate the Scottish public about the situation in the occupied land and gather aid for Palestinians.
The Glasgow Palestine Human Right Campaign organized with a local radio station to announce the couple’s trip and has also worked to help them obtain medicines.
The community of Edinburgh Mosque also helped gathering the medical aid and donations.
A Glasgow resident, John Noble, offered to provide the printing of Khalil’s van.
Another Scot offered to establish a website about Khalil and Linda journey.
The couple’s aid mission also received backing from Margo MacDonald, a Member of the Scottish Parliament.
“They are two ordinary people who are doing what they can to being medical supplies to people who need them, and so I did my best to help tell people about their trip and help to get the supplies,” MacDonald told the Evening News.
“Anyone who knows anything at all about what is happening in Gaza can only be full of admiration for what these people are doing.”
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