We are a group of parents* from Walthamstow E17 who have come together to raise funds in aid of the Save the Children Gaza Emergency Appeal. This fund provides children and families with life-saving essentials like food, water, and crucial mental health support.

"The children are always ours, every single one of them, all over the globe; and I am beginning to suspect that whoever is incapable of recognising this may be incapable of morality." —James Baldwin.

Some information from Save the Children on the horrors currently facing children and their families in Gaza:

As of 24 June 2024 :-

*Up to 21,000 [1] children are estimated to be missing in the chaos of the war in Gaza, many trapped beneath rubble, detained, buried in unmarked graves, or lost from their families.

*Latest displacements caused by the offensive in Rafah have separated more children and further increased the strain on families and communities caring for them.

*It is almost impossible to collect and verify information under the current conditions in Gaza, but at least 17,000 children are believed to be unaccompanied and separated

*Approximately 4,000 children are likely missing under the rubble [2], with an unknown number also in mass graves.

*Others have been forcibly ‘disappeared’, including an unknown number detained and transferred out of Gaza, their whereabouts unknown to their families amidst reports of ill-treatment and torture.

*Save The Children child protection teams warn of urgent action needed to protect separated and unaccompanied children – action that is severely undermined by the deteriorating security situation.

*Mass casualties were reported following the latest attacks by Israeli forces in Rafah. After one attack, UN experts said that reports emerged of ‘people trapped inside burning plastic tents’ and ‘burnt alive’, and the Gaza Ministry of Health reported ‘bodies burned beyond recognition’. Save the Children warned that confirming identification of a body by the next of kin is almost impossible when whole families have been wiped out and entry restrictions mean the equipment and experts needed cannot get in.

*More than 14,000 children have been killed since 7 October, roughly half of whom have not yet been fully identified, partially due to their bodies being harmed beyond recognition [3]. Children are also among those recently found in mass graves, according to UN experts, with many showing signs of torture and summary executions, as well as potential instances of people buried alive.

*As of 9 June, around 250 Palestinian children from the West Bank are missing in the Israeli military detention system, their families unable to physically confirm their whereabouts and wellbeing due to additional restrictions on visits introduced since October.

*The UN has received numerous reports of mass detentions, ill-treatment and enforced disappearance of possibly thousands of people, including children.

Save the Children’s Regional Director for the Middle East, Jeremy Stoner, said:

“Families are tortured by the uncertainty of the whereabouts of their loved ones. No parent should have to dig through rubble or mass graves to try and find their child’s body. No child should be alone, unprotected in a war zone. No child should be detained or held hostage.

“Children who are missing but living are vulnerable, face grave protection risks and must be found. They must be protected and reunited with their families. For the children who have been killed, their deaths must be formally marked, their families informed, burial rites respected, and accountability sought. As many have pointed out, Gaza has become a graveyard for children, with thousands of others missing, their fates unknown. There must be an independent investigation and those responsible must be held accountable. We desperately need a ceasefire to find and support the missing children who have survived, and to prevent more families from being destroyed.”

Save the Children are calling on the UK Government to do everything in their power to protect children’s lives, and immediately halt the transfer of weapons, parts, and ammunition to Israel and Palestinian armed groups.

Save the Children has been providing essential services and support to Palestinian children since 1953. Save the Children teams in Gaza work with local partners to identify and support unaccompanied children. This includes providing individual child protection case management, cash for caregivers looking after separated children, psychosocial support, and community monitoring and engagement. Save the Children also provides access to services such as child friendly spaces and nutrition and health support.

*With special mention and thanks to our amazing parent team for organising: Hasan Bayat, Amrin Nahar, Aattifah Teladia, Lucy Ackroyd, Kate Logan, Laura Walker.

Special thanks to the incredible Mini Hiba for so warmly hosting us, and to many many more of you in our wonderful community for sharing, talking, baking and donating!