Mother of Salford woman stuck in Gaza tells of her 'living nightmare'

A Salford woman who travelled to Gaza before the war broke out has been denied passage through a border into neighbouring Egypt as her mother told of her 'living nightmare'. Zaynab Wandawi, 29, travelled to the region in October with her husband, who is British Palestinian, and his relatives for a family wedding before the Israel-Hamas war erupted.

Ms Wandawi, an English language teacher, and a group of 12 family members – 10 of whom are British nationals, attempted to cross the Rafah border into Egypt on Wednesday, but were told their names were not on the list. They turned away from the border amid a disagreement between the Palestinian and Israeli authorities in control of the crossing, according to her mother, Lalah Ali-Faten, who lives in Prestwich.

Ms Ali-Faten told how 'every single day has been a living nightmare' as her daughter remains stuck in Gaza, and claimed that foreign nationals are being 'used as a bargaining chip'. The Foreign Office said the temporary closure of the Rafah crossing was 'disappointing' and it was pressing for the key border post to be reopened.

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Ms Ali-Faten, 52, said she received a voice note from her daughter and a 'one-minute phone call' explaining that foreign nationals trapped in Gaza would not be leaving until the ambulances carrying the sick and injured left first.

Ms Ali-Faten said she was told Israeli authorities said ambulances could leave but would not be permitted back into Gaza to prevent them from being targeted, while Palestinian authorities said no foreign nationals would be allowed to leave on Saturday if the ambulances were