'My children still panic': Academic opens up on family life in Scotland after escaping war-torn Gaza

Amani Ahmed was forced to leave her four young children behind when she fled the Palestinian territory to pursue her PhD in Scotland, and was left fearing for their safety as their family home was damaged by air strikes.

But after becoming one of the first Gazan academics to be spirited to safety by the Council for At-Risk Academics (CARA), she is now enrolled in a fellowship at the University of Edinburgh, with her family alongside her.

Before the war, the 40 year-old was a lecturer and head of the international relations department at the Islamic University of Gaza. The institution’s city campus was destroyed by Israeli air strikes, with CARA helping Ms Ahmed to seek sanctuary.

Initially, the aid could not cover the visa costs of her family members, leaving her eight year-old son and teenage daughters trapped. Now, however, CARA has helped Ms Ahmed to pay for the visa and living costs to bring her children to Scotland.

“After three days of the war starting, there was heavy bombing in Gaza, which shattered our flat windows and left glass everywhere when my family were in the flat,” she recalled. “I feared I would lose everyone because my entire family lives in Gaza.

“I couldn't sleep. I was so worried that one day I would find out that they were buried beneath the rubble. Often the internet signal was down, but I would check my mobile every hour during the night hoping I would hear something from them.”

Even though Ms Ahmed and her children were now safe, she said the terrible legacy of the conflict was something they had to live with every day. “My children still panic when hearing fireworks as, although they are meant to bring joy, all my children can think about is the sound of the bombing from Gaza,” she said.

CARA said it has received more than 120 applications for help from Palestinians, almost all of whom are based in Gaza. The charity, established more than nine decades ago in the face of Nazi persecution, hopes to secure the arrival of more than a dozen other Gazan academics, with placements being arranged at the University of Glasgow and other institutions.

It comes as the charity is continuing to raise awareness of its ongoing urgent fundraising appeal, which is touring universities across the country to promote its mission to protect academic freedom. The roadshow has already stopped off at Edinburgh and Glasgow universities, and is scheduled to visit St Andrews later this month.

Stephen Wordsworth, executive director of CARA, said, “We are at a pivotal moment in our charity’s history. The desperate pleas for help from scholars facing persecution and danger - in Gaza and around the world - have surged to levels not seen since our foundation nearly a century ago.

“Despite relocating more threatened academics than at any time in our history thanks to the generous support of our university partners, the sheer number of academics now at risk poses a major challenge.”

For more information on how to help or donate, please visit www.cara.ngo/how-to-help.