ALLAAELDIN Abuasaker achieved an MBA last year just before his 30th birthday. He returned to his home in Gaza in September 2023 to celebrate with his family and take up a teaching post at a local college. It felt like his life was just getting started.

In just a few weeks, everything changed. Life became a battle just to stay alive as Israel launched a brutal assault on the Gaza Strip following the Hamas attack on October 7. After surviving months under the Israeli siege, Allaaeldin and his family managed to flee as the bombing moved ever closer to their home.

Now safely in Cairo, Allaaeldin spoke about his experience of escaping the siege and how he is helping those who are trapped in Gaza.

“I was looking forward to having a big celebration for my birthday, and to seeing my family as my mum couldn’t make my graduation in Egypt,” he said.“I started teaching at the Arab College, where I had previously studied. I was happy there, I was getting to know my students and I felt there were so many possibilities and opportunities.

“Within a month, that future was gone. When the bombing started, you risked your life even going outside. If I ever left the house, I always made sure to play with my nieces and nephews first. I didn’t know if they would be there when I returned.”

Allaaeldin lived with his parents and siblings in Rafah, a city in the south of Gaza. In October, the Israeli military issued evacuation orders telling people to head south; almost overnight the population in the city swelled from 280,000 to an estimated 1.5 million, as Gazans sought a place of refuge.

The Abuasaker home, which once housed a family of eight, became a shelter for some 60 people.

“We were mostly confined to the house- hungry and dirty. In an apartment block near my house, 72 people were killed in one night; women, children, old people. Every night we heard bombs nearby and drones overhead, and the screams of people who were scared. I’ve lived through six wars in Gaza, and I never experienced anything like this.

“In the days, we had no internet. It was easy to imagine the world had moved on to another crisis and we were totally alone. All we thought about is how to survive. For 137 days I endured this.”

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In February 2024, with the invasion of Rafah looming, Allaaeldin and his family made preparations to escape to a place of safety. Despite living near the Rafah Border Crossing with Egypt, getting across it comes at a very high price- $5,000 will ensure the safe passage of just one person.

The first of his family to be selected to travel, he left alone, with just a few hours’ notice to prepare his belongings and say goodbye.

“Leaving a home; family, friends, school, the childhood you had, everything … you can’t be happy. It’s a feeling I can’t describe.

“All I thought about taking was my school and work certificates, things I’ve accomplished in life. When I arrived in Cairo and opened my suitcase I realised I brought only summer clothes, even though it was winter. I didn’t care, I just wanted to evacuate. I don’t know if I slept more than seven hours in that first week.”

Since arriving in Cairo, Allaaeldin has focused his efforts on helping those trapped in Gaza without access to the basic essentials of life. In 2017, he founded Palestine Charity Team (PCT), an organisation to help children from some of the poorest families in Gaza receive education and healthcare. Now, it has become a humanitarian organisation, helping to provide food, water and medicine to displaced families.

Allaaeldin Abuasaker preparing aid boxes in Cairo.

In March, he gathered a team of volunteers in Cairo to prepare aid packages, alongside British charity Refugee Biryani And Bananas, to distribute across Gaza.

The closure of the Rafah Crossing on May 7 has prevented any further aid from entering the strip. Trucks have been queued at the border since then, including several organised by Allaaeldin’s team.

“Our drivers have been living in their trucks at the border for more than a month now, waiting for it to reopen. They missed Eid al-Adha with their own families.

“There are many thousands of trucks full of aid waiting there, but all the supplies are getting spoiled. It’s very frustrating.”

Most recently, PCT has set up a medical clinic near a camp in Khan Yunis. Along with treating patients, the team holds daily workshops to raise awareness about the risk of disease from contaminated food and water.

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“I feel a responsibility to help my people – they are really suffering. We have around 30 volunteers in Gaza who are working tirelessly, even though they are trying to survive themselves. Since the bombing started. they have been delivering food packages and meals, we provided fresh water to schools, and entertainment for children.

“The team [has experience with] working in emergencies, we have faced many wars and aggressions. But it’s really difficult if a volunteer goes out to work and we lose contact with them. One of my team members I didn’t hear from for months. I thought the worst, but just this week she sent a message to say she is still alive. I was so happy.”

Faced with the reality that he may never return home, Allaaeldin is trying to rebuild his life. Alongside his work with PCT, he is supporting newly evacuated Palestinians in Cairo and plans to continue his education to obtain a PhD.

“It’s not easy to watch what is happening from the outside. I read in the news this week that there are tanks in our neighbourhood.

We don’t know if our house is still standing.

“My people are suffering now, they will continue to suffer even when the war ends, but we suffered before the war too. We will keep going. People are already returning and living amongst the rubble of their homes. I am optimistic it will be rebuilt.”

You can find out more about the Palestine Charity Team at palestinecharity.org.