Lulu Tarazi

My name is Lulu Tarazi, from Gaza.
I write to you with a heavy heart, full of sadness and pain after the tragedies we have experienced because of the ongoing war that has swept the Gaza Strip. I ask you to help us in these difficult circumstances we are living in.
We were forced to flee our home due to the heavy shelling that targeted our area. We initially fled to the house of one of our relatives, thinking that it would be safer. However, it was not long before the Baptist Hospital next to the house was also shelled, forcing us to flee again.
Together with my children and relatives, we sought refuge in the Holy Family Catholic Church to escape the shelling and destruction that affected everything. The streets were full of destruction, and the screams of children and the sounds of warplanes were heard everywhere. We stayed in the church for several days, waiting for the situation to calm down, but the war only escalated.
During this period, we lost everything, including our livelihood. Next door, the Greek Orthodox Church Saint Porphyrius – the third oldest in the world – bombed, and many of my relatives were killed, including children whom I loved very much. We also received news that our house was completely destroyed. We went to see it, only to find it reduced to rubble.
During the siege inside the church, we were in a state of constant panic. We lost two dear sisters in who were shot by army snipers. Their loss was a huge shock to us, especially to the children who were in a state of extreme terror from what they witnessed. The children collapsed from the loss of their loved ones, and we did not know how to comfort them or ease their pain. Those moments were some of the most difficult in our lives, as we were trapped between death and hunger, and we were unable to protect ourselves or those we love.
When the siege on the church was lifted, we went out into the destroyed streets, littered with corpses. We decided to leave, hoping to find a safer place. We headed to Rafah in the south and spent all our savings to cross. This was the only hope for a better future. The journey on foot was arduous and full of fear, as we could hear the sounds of bullets and fighting everywhere. After hours of walking in harsh conditions, we arrived in Egypt.
In Egypt, we received shocking news: my husband was under the rubble after a violent bombing targeted the market where he was shopping. This was a terrifying moment for me, especially since my children started asking, “Where is my father?” We did not know what to do or how to act. The news was so shocking that I felt like my hands were full of nothing. We contacted people close to my husband, and they told us that he was fine and that he had been pulled out from under the rubble. After contacting the hospital, we learned that he was receiving treatment after being injured in the bombing. Despite the reassurance of his safety, we all continued to worry about his health condition and his absence from us.
With the crossing still closed and our inability to reunite with my husband, we lost hope of ever meeting him. We were living in a state of constant anxiety, while I was hoping that my husband, who was supposed to travel on 16 May 2024, would join me. But the crossing remained closed, and we lived months of waiting without any hope of reuniting with him.

So, after a long wait and losing hope that the crossing would open, we decided to travel to Australia to seek safety. This decision was very difficult, but we realised that it was the only option that would guarantee us hope for a better life and a more stable future. We arrived in Australia facing new challenges, but we are now living here in relative peace, although my children – Molotov, Fahmima, and Amir – are still suffering from the absence of their father.
My children have lived through traumatic experiences in Gaza and witnessed enormous tragedies that have left a deep impact on their souls. They are in dire need of their father to feel safe and psychologically stable. I am facing huge challenges as a single mother trying to provide emotional support to them, but I desperately need their father to be there to calm their fears and ease their pain.
We are in Australia today, but we still need your help to expedite the process of reuniting with my husband. We need emotional and human support, and we also hope that you will help facilitate the completion of the procedures that will allow him to join us as soon as possible.
Lulu Tarazi