In a moving scene at Boston’s Logan International Airport, three girls from Gaza stepped onto United States soil amid applause, waving Palestinian flags and greeted by cheering volunteers.
They are part of a broader evacuation effort led by HEAL Palestine, an Ohio-based nonprofit providing urgent and long-term support to Palestinian children and their families.
Among those who arrived was 14-year-old Rahaf Al-Dalou, who sustained severe burns and shrapnel wounds in an Israeli airstrike that killed her mother and three siblings, according to the sponsoring organisation.
At Boston’s airport, Rahaf was reunited with her aunt, El-Khalili, whose presence offered a rare moment of familiarity after a harrowing journey.
“Rahaf is part of me and she’s part of Gaza,” El-Khalili said in Arabic.
“It’s so, so difficult for me,” she added about the reunion. “Because then I remember my [late] sister, her [late] kids, and then I remember my own children.”
El-Khalili has lived in the United States for over a year, accompanying her cousin Adam, who is receiving medical care in Dallas after a leg amputation.
She remains deeply connected to relatives in Gaza, including seven daughters, whom she described as fearful and hungry. “They’re scared and they’re hungry,” she said. “Last time I saw them [by phone], they looked so thin from lack of food. It’s hard for me to eat knowing that.”
The two other girls, both 12 years old, face dire health challenges. Seba Abuabeda is a double amputee and will continue her care in Seattle. Rahaf Abuawwad is battling chronic medical conditions worsened by Gaza’s collapsing healthcare system and is headed to Columbus, Ohio.
This group joins 11 Palestinian children brought to the US this week by HEAL Palestine, with 62 children to date granted access to US medical facilities. Most suffer from amputations or serious burns. Many will stay with host families or in hospital housing during treatment.
Grim beyond imagination
Nora Khalil, a volunteer with the organisation, highlighted malnutrition as one of the major challenges facing children in Gaza.
She emphasised the severity of the situation, saying, “The conditions they’re living in now are more horrific than what we see in the movies.” Khalil added that the children would receive immediate medical attention to treat their injuries and malnutrition, followed by ongoing care to support their recovery.
Martha Miller, a nurse practitioner based in Boston and member of Doctors Against Genocide, was also among those gathered at the airport to welcome the children. She said her presence was driven by a desire to support families arriving from Gaza.
“To offer a welcome to someone who has gone through so much,” Miller said, adding, “I’m very upset about what our government and our country are doing in Palestine, so this is a way to do something positive.”
Israeli blockade worsens famine
Following Israel’s decision to end its ceasefire agreement with the Palestinian resistance group Hamas in March, it imposed a total blockade on food and essential supplies entering Gaza, triggering widespread condemnation from the international community.
The Palestinian Health Ministry reported on 1 August that seven more Palestinians in Gaza starved to death, bringing the total number of deaths due to Israeli-made starvation since October 2023 to 169, including 93 children.
The World Food Programme (WFP) estimates that one in four Palestinians in Gaza faces starvation-like conditions, with 100,000 women and children suffering from acute malnutrition.
Israel’s genocide in Gaza, which began in October 2023, has killed nearly 61,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, most of them women and children.
Experts, however, contend the actual death toll far exceeds official reports, estimating it could be as high as 200,000.
