Humza Yousaf has urged the international community to “ step up and demand an end to collective punishment” of the people of Gaza, following Israel’s order for more than one million Palestinians to evacuate.
The First Minister shared a video recorded by his mother-in-law, Elizabeth El-Nakla, who is currently trapped in the enclave.
“A retired nurse from Dundee, Scotland. She, like the vast majority of people in Gaza, has nothing to do with Hamas,” he said. “She has been told to leave Gaza but, like the rest of the population, is trapped with nowhere to go.”
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In the clip, an emotional Ms El-Nakla says this will be her last video.
“Everybody from Gaza is moving towards where we are. One million people. No food, no water and still they're bombing them as they leave.
“Where are they going to put them?
“But my thought is all these people in the hospital cannot be evacuated.
“Where's humanity? Where's people's hearts in the world to let this happen in this day and age? May God help us. Goodbye.”
This is Elizabeth El-Nakla. She is my mother-in-law. A retired nurse from Dundee, Scotland. She, like the vast majority of people in Gaza, has nothing to do with Hamas. She has been told to leave Gaza but, like the rest of the population, is trapped with nowhere to go. pic.twitter.com/D3ZUtnEmyO
— Humza Yousaf (@HumzaYousaf) October 13, 2023
Israel’s order to evacuate more than a million civilians from the entire northern half of Gaza comes ahead of a likely ground invasion in response to the Hamas terror attack that left more than 1,300 people dead.
Retaliatory airstrikes have already caused chaos, displacing hundreds of thousands of people and leading to shortages of food, water and fuel.
Gaza’s health ministry said that 1,537 Palestinians, including 500 children, had been killed this week.
The Israel Defense Forces has given civilians 24 hours to move south of the Wadi Gaza, a wetland that cuts across the Palestinian territory, for their own safety.
However, Gazan officials has said people should not comply with the Israeli demands, calling it “psychological warfare.”
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The United Nations has “strongly appealed” for the evacuation call to be rescinded, warning that it risked turning “what is already a tragedy into a calamitous situation.”
They said it would be “impossible” to carry out such a movement of people “without devastating humanitarian consequences.”
Mr Yousaf said there was “no justification for the death of innocent men, women and children”.
Posting on Twitter, formerly known as X, Mr Yousaf said: “UN has said the order to move 1.1m people in 24 hours will lead to ‘devastating humanitarian consequences’.
“The international community must step up and demand an end to collective punishment.
“Enough. There can be no justification for the death of innocent men, women & children.”
Former first minister Nicola Sturgeon shared the video on social media: “My heart breaks for the people of Israel and for all the innocent civilians in Gaza who are also paying the price of Hamas’ appalling acts of terror.
“Closer to home, my thoughts are with my friends Nadia and Humza and their family, and also with Scotland’s precious Jewish community, at this unimaginably awful time.”
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