Oldham woman crying as husband approved for Gaza evacuation

Now she is hoping he is still alive to receive the good news, after she has been unable to contact him for more than 24 hours.

Afshan Abubakar met Hani Abualqaraya through volunteer work. She helped to teach English to children at the Al Fakhoora school in Gaza City, over Telegram and Zoom.

While Afshan has not visited Gaza herself, she met Hani in person in Egypt last year, where they got engaged. The couple consider themselves Islamically married.

Ever since war broke out in the region following an attack on Israel by Hamas on October 7, Afshan has been left feeling extremely stressed.

In late October, Afshan said she felt ‘dead inside’, and she has experienced issues contacting Hani due to internet blockages.

The couple had applied for a visa on September 20, more than two weeks before the war.

His visa was approved after war broke out, but his passport could not be returned to him – hampering efforts to leave the region.

Sign up to our newsletters to get the latest stories sent straight to your inbox.

Now, Afshan has enlisted the help of one of Hani’s friends and the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) to get his passport back to him.

Hani is due to be handed his passport directly from the UNRWA’s director in Gaza, Thomas White, this weekend.

The Home Office has also agreed ‘exceptionally’ to help facilitate Hani’s departure from Gaza.

Jerusalem Vice Consul Suha Zeidan MBE wrote an email on Friday, December 15, stating: “I am writing to tell you that the Home Office has agreed exceptionally to facilitate Hani’s departure from Gaza into Egypt via Rafah. Hani’s name has been approved by UK Border Force.

“Name is now being sent to the Egyptian and Israeli authorities for final approval. When we are told that Hani’s name is cleared by the authorities we will then inform you when he will be authorised to cross Egypt.”

Afshan and Hani (Image: Afshan Abubakar)

Follow The Oldham Times on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, YouTube, and Threads.

Afshan’s new solicitor has now come back to her with even better news, with the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office now apparently agreeing to help evacuate Hani from the region.

A letter from the FCDO to the solicitors says:  “As of 14 December, the FCDO can seek to extend our assistance in leaving Gaza to Palestinians who have strong links to the UK by having either a spouse or children under 18 currently living in the UK and who currently hold valid permission to enter or remain for longer than 6 months.

“Ultimately, as previously explained, decisions as to who can leave Gaza and enter Egypt remain with the Israeli and Egyptian authorities.”

Speaking to The Oldham Times, Afshan said she was praying Hani would be able to escape the region, but she was still worried about his family and everyone else still stuck in the region.

She added: “They agreed to evacuate him. I can’t believe, I swear. I can’t believe, I’m shocked.

“I’m just praying he’s still alive because they were bombing where he is now. I’ve not been able to connect with Hani to give him the good news, but I’m going to keep trying tonight and in the morning again.

“Thomas White will give the passport to Hani by hand tomorrow, so he will see me before him, so I will email him and give him another update so at least he can share good news with Hani. Look, what’s the odds of Hani meeting Thomas White? He’s the director, he’s the one who said to Hani ‘I promise you, I will get your passport to you’.

“I got Hani’s friend to drop Hani’s passport at the office in Cairo and then they got their driver to drive the passport to Rafah and they gave it to Thomas, and he has it in his hands.

“I’m excited, and at the same time I can’t fully be excited because I’m praying he’s still alive. It’s bad me saying that, but I’m being honest. When I spoke to him last a house just near him was bombed, so I’m scared and excited at the same time.

“It’s like when you feel restrained, unable to breathe properly and enjoy properly.

“I feel sorry for the people there. At least Hani’s got some hope, they’ve not got any until there’s a ceasefire.”

Fundraiser launched to rebuild homes

Afshan has also launched an online fundraising campaign with the hope it will help rebuild flats in Hani’s Gaza City neighbourhood after the war ends.

Hani’s block of flats was one of many bombed in the region during the war.

Some are now criticising the scale of the destruction as ‘domicide’ – the mass destruction of homes making a region uninhabitable.

Hani’s flat was one of thousands bombed (Image: Abualqaraya family)

A report by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs has estimated that 1.8 million people in Gaza, or nearly 80 per cent of the population, are now internally displaced.

The same report says that more than 46,000 homes have been destroyed and more than 234,000 housing units have been otherwise damaged, constituting more than 60 per cent of the housing stock.

The fundraiser, set up by Afshan with a goal of £32,000, is hosted on the GoFundMe website.

Afshan said: “It’s not being selfish, Hani’s thinking of his neighbours. He said ‘even if we manage to build two flats, it can accommodate many’.

“He’s thinking about other things as well, that money can be utilised for basic necessities and then construction of the flats, which will obviously take time. If we start collecting some charity now, within a year or so at least there will be enough.

“He said once the construction starts he’ll ensure that we get updates for us and who’s doing the construction so people don’t feel like we’ve hidden anything, and the money’s been used fairly, things like that.”

War rages on

Israel’s air and ground assault on Gaza over the past 10 weeks has killed more than 18,700 Palestinians, according to the Health Ministry in Hamas-run Gaza. Thousands more are missing and feared dead beneath the rubble.

Israel-Hamas war: reported Israeli ground operations (Image: PA)

The ministry does not differentiate between civilian and combatant deaths.

Its latest count did not specify how many were women and children, though they have consistently made up around two-thirds of the dead in previous tallies.

Israeli figures show more than 1,100 Israelis were killed in the October 7 attack by Hamas.

A seven-day ceasefire had offered a glimpse of hope to Gazans, though this came to an end on the morning of Friday, December 1.

If you have a story, I cover the whole borough of Oldham. Please get in touch at jack.fifield@newsquest.co.uk or click to send me a message on WhatsApp or on Signal on 07517566383.