Gaza - Lifeline Initiative - Mahdi's Family

This fund raiser is organized on the behalf of the survivors of Mahdi family in Gaza, mainly Dr. Mahdi Mahdi, and his wife and children who are currently located in the crises zone of Rafah.

Yet another heartbreaking nightmare tale from Gaza.

Dr. Mahdi Mahdi, a resilient survivor from Gaza, has faced unthinkable horrors. On November 11, 2023, the Mahdi Maternity Hospital, his family's sanctuary, endured four bombings by Israeli forces. This cruel assault claimed the lives of 10 cherished family members, including his two brothers, Dr. Basil and Dr. Raed, his wife, Iman, and Dr. Raed's seven children: Sameera, Yousef, Abd Al Rahman, Amro, Mera, Ahmad, and Mohammad. Amidst the devastation, only Dr. Mahdi emerged as a survivor.

Dr. Mahdi barely escaped the rubble, only to face a tank that fired at him as he ran for his life. He waved his white doctor’s coat as a sign of surrender, but the tank showed no mercy. He miraculously made it to the south of Gaza after a harrowing journey that took over 6 hours of walking, with no food, water, nor any clothing to shelter them from the brutal cold winds. There, he reunited with his surviving relatives near the Rafah border with Egypt.

But his ordeal is not over. Gaza is under siege, and the people there are suffering from a humanitarian crisis. More than 22,000 Palestinians have been killed, and 58,000 injured, since last October. Water, food, shelter, and medicine are close to nonexistent. Dr. Mahdi have lost everything -brothers, nieces and nephews, their hospital, their home, and everything they ever had and took for granted, leaving them with no hope for the future.

Every time we connect with Dr. Mahdi, his strength seems to dwindle further, urging us to act swiftly. Initially, he was determined to return home after the war, but after two months of barely surviving in dire conditions—no food, water, or shelter from the brutal winter—he pleads with his remaining family outside Gaza to help them escape, a plea for survival.

That's why we urgently seek your assistance. They require funds to cross the border into Egypt, where they can find safety and a fresh start. We aim to raise $10,000 per survivor, totaling $80,000 for the eight remaining family members. The breakdown includes $7,000 for border crossing expenses and $3,000 to sustain themselves in Egypt, as they lack contacts and support once they cross the border.

The 7,000$ is the quote for having agencies "Ya Hala" in Egypt making arrangement with the Egyptian government to have their names listed on the Rafah border crossing and grant them authorization to cross the border. The quote includes the agency fees as well as the governmental fees, these quotes went up from merely 400$ to 700$ before the war to these staggering numbers we are witnessing now days due the extreme demand by the people in Gaza to cross the border, making it as a gatekeep to stop people from crossing by asking for non-logical amounts of money.

The remaining 3,000$ is meant to help each family member to resettle in Egypt, accounting for accommodation, transportation, food, clothing and all the necessary needs of living in a new country with nothing to their names.

Your donation, regardless of the amount, can make a significant impact. Please share this GoFundMe page with your networks, amplifying Dr. Mahdi's plight. Together, we can rescue his family from the nightmare of war and offer them a chance at a better life.

Thank you for your compassion and generosity.