The parents-in-law of Scotland’s first minister, Humza Yousaf, have arrived safely in Scotland after fleeing the conflict in Gaza, while dozens of other British citizens struggle to leave.
Yousaf shared a family photo of his wife, Nadia, and her parents, Elizabeth and Maged El-Nakla, surrounded by their relatives.
The El-Naklas, from Dundee, had been visiting family in Gaza when the conflict with Israel erupted. They were named among 92 British nationals permitted to pass through the Rafah border crossing into Egypt on Friday morning.
At the start of the conflict there were an estimated 200 British citizens in Gaza. Of these, just over 100 are known now to have left.
Many of those still trapped face the prospect of leaving without their family members after the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) omitted those without UK passports from the safe passage list, according to the group Support Families in Gaza (SFG).
It said the FCDO approach was in stark contrast to decisions made during the evacuation of Ukraine, where any family member of a British citizen would be provided with a visa.
The policy also differs from those of other countries, with British families reporting that the US is allowing anybody with an American family to leave, SFG claims.
One person who faces leaving family members behind said those with Palestinian heritage were being treated like “second-class citizens”.
The person – who did not wish to be identified – said: “When we got the call that I and other family members had been added to the list, we found out that my dad’s wife is not on there. My dad has had to leave his wife and other family members behind so he can get my young brothers to safety.
“We know of at least one other family in this situation. It is heartbreaking, nobody should have to make this kind of choice. The world has lost its humanity. We know FCDO have made exemptions in the past for people from Ukraine, Afghanistan and Sudan, it just feels like those of us with Palestinian heritage are always treated like second-class citizens.”
Louise Harkin, of SFG, said: “We have been in touch with organisations and lawyers who work to support people who have a right to come to the UK through different visa schemes; they have been quite clear that British Palestinians are being treated very differently to people fleeing the Ukraine conflict.
“Gaza is currently the least safe place on the planet, almost 10,000 people are confirmed dead, almost half of whom are children, yet the government now wants to separate British children from their mothers and families. We call upon the government to allow British citizens to bring their families with them.”
Even British nationals who are on the list have faced difficulties crossing the border in recent days due to disagreements between Palestinian and Israeli authorities.
Zaynab Wandawi, a British national born in Salford, Greater Manchester, was turned away again at the Rafah border crossing on Saturday, her mother, Lalah Ali-Faten, told the PA news agency.
Wandawi, an English language teacher, and a group of 12 family members, 10 of whom are British nationals, attempted to cross into Egypt on Wednesday but were told their names were not on the list.
The 29-year-old had travelled to Gaza at the beginning of October with her husband, who is British Palestinian, and his relatives for a family member’s wedding, before the war erupted.
Her mother said she believed that the Foreign Office was “not doing enough”, and added: “Just passing the list of names, I’m sorry, that doesn’t cut it as a government.”
The UK deputy prime minister, Oliver Dowden, said the government was “hopeful” that the Rafah crossing would reopen on Sunday to allow more British nationals to leave Gaza.
He said Britain was working to ensure civilians could exit the besieged territory “as rapidly as possible”, with Foreign Office officials looking to “facilitate them in getting to the border and crossing” over to Egypt.
The FCDO has been approached for comment.
