The cousin of a 13-year-old Palestinian girl seriously injured by rocket shrapnel in Gaza is desperately appealing for help from Ireland to save her life.
Schoolgirl Sally Herzallah was sheltering in a chalet with her displaced family in the AlMawasi area of Khan Younis on Tuesday night when eyewitnesses said the child was hit in the head by rocket shrapnel.
An upsetting video showing the little girl on her birthday only months earlier has been posted online, followed by photos of the child’s devastating injuries.
Her family say there is no way the child can be treated in the enclave, with only 11 of the 36 hospitals functional after four months of conflict.
Sally had lived with her family in the United Arab Emirates until recently but her parents wanted to return to be near relatives.
“This is like a nightmare,” Sally’s cousin Nedaa AlAbadla told the Irish Independent. Now based in Turkey, Ms AlAbadla spoke to this publication in December about her hopes that Ireland could become a safe home for her family, as she appealed for asylum.
Now, she is has made a desperate plea to the Irish State and doctors to help the little girl, who she says has no medication to deal with the traumatic injury.
“Sally’s parents have collapsed,” Ms AlAbadla said.
“After the bombardment, they found Sally and thought she was dead.
“When her father Mohamed realised Sally has been injured by a piece of rocket shrapnel stuck in her head, he was devastated.
“They have a spark of hope because Sally is alive but she needs serious medical care and help.
“We need international help and I am reaching out to Ireland because I have friends in Ireland and I know the country cares about Palestinian children.
“We all know that the Irish Government is in solidarity with the Palestinian people, they have showed this during this conflict.
“Ireland is one of the few countries that has stood with us when we really needed them to.
“We, as Palestinians appreciate the situation is incredibly difficult, but we need help.
“We need a serious movement on this conflict. Too many children are dying. And right now, we desperately need help for Sally, to get her out of Gaza, to save her.
“We need doctors to get Sally out of Gaza and to help her. Her parents believe she can be saved and we believe in the power of the Irish Government, medical services, and in humanity.
“We believe they can do something to get Sally out and give her a chance at life.”
Ms AlAbadla said Mohamed, an architect, and Sally’s mother, Samar, watched in horror as their girl clung to life. But almost 24 hours later she is still in agony and without serious medical intervention.
Sally is among tens of thousands of Gazans seriously injured, with nearly 30,000 dead, in Israel’s attack on the territory following Hamas’s surprise assault on October 7 in which its militants killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians.
“Sally has three sisters and one brother. Most of he kids in the family are injured,” former human rights worker Ms AlAbadla said.
“Another of my cousins, a 13-year-old boy, was killed last night. This is all so traumatic, there are no words. But we still hope for Sally’s survival and that help will come for her.
“When Sally’s father found her, he whispered to her ‘Please forgive me, I couldn’t do anything. Maybe I will die in minutes.’
“That broke my heart. I have to try to help them and speaking out, asking, pleading for help is all we can do.
“Sally has a funny character, she likes to play with other children. She was born in the UAE. But they returned to Gaza three or four years ago.
“She was like any little girl, she had a beautiful life, her parents gave her everything they could. But this is the one thing they need beyond anything to give her – a chance to live.
“The family has nothing to do with politics, they are educated. Sally is the eldest of her siblings. She is the joy of her parents. She was so full of life and I know her condition needs immediate help and medication. She needs specialist help because her injury is extremely serious. Please help.” [email protected]
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