This week, MAG partnered with a coalition of international development organisations to host a parliamentary reception, calling for a strong UK international development programme amid rising global challenges.
At the event, Hana Albaioumy, MAG Emergency Response Manager for the Occupied Palestinian Territories, shared her personal experience of life in Gaza.
"As someone who has witnessed first-hand the devastating impact of conflict, displacement and humanitarian crises, I have a very personal interest in the work we are here to talk about today.
I am from Gaza City, Palestine. A place everybody in this room will have seen on the news for the past 15 months. In Gaza right now, 90% of the population is displaced. Hundreds of thousands of missiles, grenades, and other explosive weapons have been used. Homes are destroyed. Deadly unexploded bombs are hidden within an estimated 42 million tonnes of rubble.
Last year I left Gaza, but my family remains there. I worry about what the future holds for them, for my nephews and nieces.
When will they have a home again? When will they have a school to attend? When will they be able to walk without fear?
I think constantly about my loved ones’ safety and our impatient hopes for peace. I dream of a future where children can play at the seaside and their parents can go about their normal lives without fear of a missile strike or an unexploded bomb detonating.
Gaza is one of the starkest examples of the harrowing impact of conflict.
And when we look around the world, we are seeing more and more conflicts. More countries engaged in conflict than at any time since World War Two.
And a quarter of the world’s population living in areas affected by war.
There is nowhere near enough humanitarian aid getting into Gaza. But when food, fuel, and medicines reach people in need, it can be the difference between life and death.
When my colleagues working in MAG’s risk education teams give people the knowledge of how to stay safe from unexploded bombs, people’s lives and limbs are saved. Reda, a mother who lives in a camp for internally displaced people in Gaza, told us that without this advice, she might have let her children walk into danger.
Even if there is a ceasefire tomorrow, the impact will be felt for years. The task of reconstruction, including assessing and dealing with the threat of unexploded ordnance, will be unlike anything seen in recent memory.
But we know from other places where conflict has ended, like Angola and Laos, that with the right support, communities can recover and prosper even after they have suffered the most horrific armed violence.
This is why our collective work matters. It saves lives and transforms communities in the long-term. It means people can safely return home and begin rebuilding their lives that have been shattered by war.
In the wake of the conflict and ceasefire in Lebanon, and the rapidly changing situation in Syria, this work will be needed more than ever. Life-saving work like my MAG colleagues across the Middle East are doing. Keeping people safe from unexploded bombs and landmines. Supporting them to return home and rebuild their lives.
I hope we will soon see a ceasefire in Gaza, and peace and stability across the region. And I hope you will stand with all of us as we continue to save and change lives around the world."
Read more about the parliamentary reception here.
