The Muslim Scout Fellowship is appealing to the UK Muslim Scouting community and beyond to join hands with us and support our emergency appeal for the people of Gaza.

Throughout this past week, we have been in close contact with the Palestinian Scout Association. It is with great sadness that we received the news of each scout leader and young person whose life has been tragically cut short by the bombs raining down upon the entire population of Gaza.

We are bound, by our faith and by our commitment to the principles and values of scouting, to answer the cries for help from our fellow scouts in Gaza. By keeping them in our prayers, by raising our voices to call for an immediate ceasefire, and by doing our part to deliver the urgent humanitarian aid that the people of Gaza so desperately need.

The Heartbreaking Reality:

- Over 4,200 people have been killed by the intense and indiscriminate bombing of Gaza. Innocent men, women, children, medical personnel, journalists, and UN staff have all been killed. Entire family lines have been wiped out.

- Gaza was already one of the most densely populated areas in the world, with 2.3 million people squeezed into a long, narrow strip of land. Overnight, 1.1 million people were internally displaced, squeezing the population of Gaza into an even smaller area of land.

- Over 50% of the 2.2 million people in Gaza are children, under the age of 18. They were born into a land that is besieged and have never known what it means to live free. A 16 year old in Gaza today has lived through 5 major military operations already, and is trying to survive the most brutal one yet.

- There are currently 50,000 pregnant women in Gaza now, and many thousands of chronic and terminally ill patients, all unable to receive the treatment they need.

- For the past week, the people have been cut off from their water supplies. People are rationing any remaining water amongst themselves, and some are resorting to drinking water from the sea. Understand that 90% of the water in Gaza was already unfit for public consumption before the bombings began.

- With electricity supplies cut off, 2.3 million people, as well as the hospitals are relying on solar energy or fuel-powered generators which is also rapidly running out.

- With no food allowed in, no electricity to preserve the shelf life of food, and with bakeries also being targeted, there is a huge food shortage.

- Gaza's hospitals have almost completely run out of supplies. Doctors are now using store-bought vinegar to sterilise and treat wounds. They are having to operate without anaesthesia. They are washing and reusing sterile equipment and gloves. They have run out of beds and out of body bags, and are using ice cream trucks as morgues.

Islamic Relief's Efforts:

Islamic Relief has been delivering aid in Gaza and the Occupied Palestinian Territory since 1997. With aid corridors into Gaza closed, the team on the ground has instead been working tirelessly to procure food and medical items from within Gaza and distribute them where they are most needed. They have also been stockpiling aid outside of Gaza so that as soon as aid is allowed in, they can respond quickly and effectively.

The situation in Gaza is terrifying, and heartbreaking to see.

The need is huge.

The people of Gaza are relying on all of our support to help save lives.

Please donate to this Emergency Appeal and help save lives in Gaza.

Thank you for supporting.

NB: This is a Zakat Eligible fundraiser - please comment ZAKAT when donating, to ensure that this is administered accordingly.