Scotland’s first minister, Humza Yousaf, has called on the UK foreign secretary to push for the establishment of a humanitarian corridor to evacuate civilians from Gaza.
Yousaf revealed on Monday that his wife Nadia’s parents, who live in Dundee, are trapped in Gaza and struggling to find safe passage.
In a letter to James Cleverly on Tuesday, Yousaf reiterated his condemnation of the “abhorrent terrorist actions of Hamas”.
“Too many innocent people have already lost their lives as a consequence of these completely unjustifiable and illegitimate attacks by Hamas,” Yousaf wrote. He added: “Innocent men, women and children cannot, and should not, pay the price for the actions of a terrorist group.
“Collective punishment of innocent civilians cannot be justified and will do nothing to set the conditions for peace in the region.”
Yousaf continued: “As a close friend and ally of Israel, I therefore ask the UK government to call on the government of Israel to ensure innocent civilians are protected and to put in place an immediate ceasefire to allow the safe passage of civilians through the Rafah border.
“Furthermore, it should open a humanitarian corridor into Gaza to allow supplies, including food, fuel, water and medical supplies, for those civilians who are trapped, helpless and cannot leave.”
Yousaf’s in-laws, Maged and Elizabeth El-Nakla, had been visiting his father-in-law’s 92-year-old mother when the first Hamas attack took place at the weekend.
On Tuesday evening, Yousaf said he had made contact with his in-laws and that they were safe “for now” but also “terrified”.
He told the BBC: “I think the worst thing is that they feel literally trapped. They’re being told to leave … but they have nowhere to go.
“The Rafah border [with Egypt] had been bombed and even if it was open, there’s no guarantee of safe passage travelling between where they live and the Rafah border.”
He added that his brother-in-law, who is a doctor in Gaza, had said medical supplies “are at the lowest he’s ever seen, to the point where they’re having to use bits of their own clothes to try to bandage and tourniquet wounds where they can”.
Yousaf had told the corporation on Monday that “despite the best efforts of the British Foreign Office, nobody can guarantee them safe passage anywhere”.
“So I’m in a situation where we don’t know whether or not my mother-in-law and father-in-law, who have nothing to do – as most Gazans don’t – with Hamas or with any terror attack, will make it through the night or not.”
Yousaf ended his letter to Cleverly: “Finally, I call on the international community to be proactive and work towards an immediate ceasefire and a long-lasting peace that sees Israelis and Palestinians treated as equals.”
He said the Scottish government stood ready to assist with relief efforts.
Earlier on Tuesday, tributes were paid to Bernard Cowan, a grandfather who grew up in Glasgow before settling in Israel and who was confirmed as the first Scottish victim of Saturday’s assault by Hamas on Israel.
In a statement, his family said: “We are grieving the loss of our son and brother, Bernard Cowan, who was horrifically murdered on Saturday during the surprise terrorist attack on Israel by Hamas.
“We ask for privacy at this time while we process this huge loss to our family, both at home and in Israel, and to the Jewish community in Glasgow where he will be sorely missed.”
