Thank you for donating! If you're here then you are a friend, a friend who shares in our deep sadness and utter rage about the ongoing genocide in Gaza and the escalating, catastrophic violence in Lebanon, the West Bank and Syria.

Who are we? We are a group of parents* from Walthamstow E17 who wanted to take our sadness, rage and hopelessness and use it to come together as a community to do something for good.

In July you helped us to raise just shy of 10k in aid of the Save the Children Gaza Emergency Appeal, and now we're asking for your help again.

**We are fundraising in aid of The Middle East Emergency Appeal; this provides children and families in Gaza and Lebanon and other affected areas including the West Bank and Syria 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 3rd December 2024:-

-Gaza is home to the largest number of amputee children in modern history: Each day 10 children are losing 1 or both of their legs.

-The occupied Palestinian territory is now ranked as the deadliest place in the world for children.

-Gaza currently has the highest rates of child malnutrition globally; with under 5's at great risk.

-Of the 11,300 identified* children who have been killed by Israel ; 3,100 (30%) are aged under five.

-Among the identified children aged under five were 710 babies of less than one, with 20% of them born and killed during the war.

-About 130,000 children aged under 10 have been trapped for 50 days in areas in northern Gaza that are almost entirely inaccessible to aid workers and not receiving food or medical supplies despite warnings of famine.

-Children aged under five and women who are pregnant or breastfeeding are most vulnerable to malnutrition as their bodies have greater need for nutrients.

-A child with acute malnutrition is 11 times more likely to die from common childhood illnesses, including pneumonia and nearly half of deaths among children under 5 years globally are linked to undernutrition.

(*Identified: number likely higher but issues with identification due to weapons used/buried/lack of infrastructure)

(*The 11,300* identified children killed in Gaza counts those identified between last October and 31 August, so will be considerably higher now.)

Experts say the available figures are likely to be under-estimates, with the actual death toll believed to be much higher. The official death toll does not include an estimated 10,000 people buried under the rubble of collapsed buildings and presumed dead, and an unknown number of indirect deaths caused by factors like diseases, starvation and the collapse of the healthcare system

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Further info:

-The people of Gaza have now been enduring this onslaught for 423 days.

-A study in the Lancet estimated that 186,000 human beings in Gaza have been killed by Israel. Experts and those on the ground suggest that the true number is expected to be much higher than this again.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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!