Inside Palestinian’s horror Gaza genocide watching brother and pa die as Gary Lineker fundraises for UK dream

A Palestinian woman that’s living in a tent in Gaza said Gary Lineker’s support has given her strength to keep fighting.

Heba Abaid, 26, is one of hundreds of young students in Palestine dreaming of a life in the UK after being offered a university place, away from the terrors of genocide. The UK government confirmed last month it would continue helping exceptional young people to leave Gaza if they were offered an unconditional place at a British university, as long as they have a full scholarship or can pay the tuition fees.

But, Heba – like so many other young Palestinians – has very little money to her name. She now lives in a tent with her entire family in the exact spot her house used to stand.

Heba’s story, which is echoed hundreds of times across the country, sparked a host of British celebrities to launch a fundraiser. Their hope was to raise enough money in an online auction to help some exceptional students live their dream at a university in the UK.

Former Match of the Day host Gary Lineker donated a signed Nagoya Grampus Eight football shirt from Japan, where he spent the final two years of his playing career. Scottish actor Brian Cox offered a signed copy of his memoir and original flyers from his productions. Nicola Coughlan, Charlotte Church, and Paloma Faith were among 18 other celebrities from sport, music and film, who agreed to join the Scholarships for Gaza online auction.

Heba would receive a portion of any total funds raised in the scheme, which was organised by charity Phoenix Space and lasts until Thursday August 6. She paid tribute to the celebrities for their generosity, as well as all members of the public donating to the cause.

You can take part in the auction here

She told the Mirror: “Seeing people I have admired for years, including Gary Lineker and others, stand behind my story means far more to me than I can put into words. It doesn’t just make me happy… it gives me strength.”

Throughout years of war and family tragedies, as well as hundreds of displacements, Heba believed her dream of continuing education was over. But, knowing people she hadn’t even met were supporting her had changed her outlook on the future.

“It makes me hold on to my dream even more tightly. It has given me hope that my dream is not out of reach and it motivates me to keep fighting for it, no matter how difficult the journey is.”

Heba needs to raise a total of £32,129 to move to the UK and study for her Master’s degree in Design Management. She’s so far raised a little more than £3,000 in a GoFundMe.

Genocide

Heba’s harrowing past few years in Gaza has culminated in her family sleeping on the ashes of their former home. In the aftermath of Israeli bombs, the family’s stunning home in Khan Yunis, Gaza, was completely destroyed, and her brother, Ahmed, was killed in the demolition.

“It was a terrifying night,” she said. “People were running through the streets with nowhere safe to go because the shelling surrounded us from every direction. Hundreds of people were injured in the streets and many were killed. That day, no one could move safely.”

The five remaining members of the family managed to escape south to Rafah in January 2024. Within a few days, two-thirds of the entire Gazan population had been forcibly funnelled into the city by the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF).

Benjamin Netanyahu’s government claimed the southern half of Gaza was a safe haven for civilians. But on February 9, he ordered the IDF to plan an offensive on Rafah. Just two days after Netanyahu’s order, at least 44 Palestinians were killed by Israeli bombs inside the city in a single day.

Heba and her mum, dad, and two younger brothers, continued to move among refugee camps for the next four months. They lived in cramped conditions, and struggled to sleep at night due to the ongoing destruction of Gaza around them, as well as the constant fear.

The family were allowed to move into the central area of Gaza by May 2024. They might’ve been closer to their home in Khan Yunis, but they were still displaced hundreds of times over the following 18 months. It made finding anywhere to live impossible, and just when they were getting settled, they were forced to move again.

“We moved from one place to another so many times that I’ve lost count,” said Heba. “Each time, we had to start over from nothing, fleeing under bombardment with almost nothing. It was incredibly difficult and expensive to rebuild our lives every time… to put up a new tent, buy clothes, and find food. It truly felt like starting from zero again and again.”

But, Heba’s most difficult period was yet to come, with the heartbreaking death of her father.

Her dad was living with dementia during the genocide. The constant displacements made his condition incredibly difficult to manage, on top of a brain tumour that was diagnosed a few months earlier.

During one particularly chaotic displacement under bombardment, Heba’s dad was lost in the fray. It would’ve been difficult to find anyone in the frantic Gazan turmoil during that time – never mind an elderly man with Alzheimer’s disease.

“We searched for him everywhere,” Heba said. “When we finally found him three weeks later, he was walking alone at night on one of the streets.

“At that moment, the area beside him was bombed.”

Heba watched as her dad was caught in wreckage of unrestrained Israeli bombings. He was left bleeding for more than two hours before anyone could reach him.

“The situation was so dangerous that night,” she said. “No-one could even drive their car, including the ambulances, so he had to wait more than two hours before he was finally taken for treatment.”

The family weren’t able to go with the dad to the hospital, and had no idea where he’d been taken. They later discovered he was forced to wait in an overcrowded operating room that was filled with injured locals.

He died in that room after losing too much blood.

“We didn’t know that he had passed away,” she said. “When he didn’t return, we went from one hospital to another searching for him.”

They eventually found him in a morgue, Heba recalled. He was registered as an unidentified person. Doctors told the family he’d died just moments before they arrived at the hospital.

Famine

Shortly before Heba’s dad died, the IDF launched a total blockade on Gaza. Essential supplies, including aid and food, were banned from entering the Gaza Strip. By August 22 2025, Gaza was officially in a famine.

The blockade sparked extreme shortages of food, water, and humanitarian aid across the country. Meanwhile, stockpiles of relief were stored in warehouses outside of the Gaza Strip.

Heba’s mum became particularly ill during the famine, she said. She was severely malnourished, and they were all forced to drink contaminated water just to survive. Her mum’s weight eventually dropped to a little more than six stone.

“The famine was an incredibly difficult period,” said Heba. “After my father passed away, the famine became even worse. There was almost no food available and whatever food could be found was extremely expensive.

My family became ill, especially my mother. She was in a very poor condition, and there was no safe drinking water available.”

Nearly 450 people died inside Gaza from starvation by mid-August 2025, including 147 children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. It’s still not entirely clear how many people have died since.

In November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his former defence minister, Yoav Gallant. Judges said they “intentionally and knowingly deprived the civilian population in Gaza of objects indespensible to their survival, including food, water, and medicine”. There were reasonable grounds that they held responsiblity for the war crime of stavation, the judges added.

Heading home

Heba’s family has only recently been allowed back into their neighbourhood in Khan Yunis. When they returned, they found their home – a sanctuary from the chaos of the daily life before the war – was now rubble.

A tattered old cupcake tin, the drawer from a bedside table, and a lone, solitary dinner plate were strewn across the floor – small reminders of a previous life that still contained Heba’s brother and father.

They’re now living in a tent on top of its ashes, in a bid to keep a little part of home close to them. Heba, her mother, and two younger brothers were all living cramped inside, cooking whatever they can find on a small, makeshift stove.

“I refuse to give up,” Heba said. “When I got my offer from Lancaster University, it felt like a dream come true. It showed me that dreams can survive, even in the middle of the war, even in the middle of genocide, even, through all things we’ve lived through here in Gaza.”

Heba managed to raise about £3,000 on a GoFundMe before she received her Master’s offer from Lancaster. Now, she’s hoping she can combine that with anything the celebrities raise to secure her education in the UK, and a chance to live a better future. She said the celebs’ auction was a lifeline she never thought she’d get.

She said: “It reminds me that kindness can cross every border, and that even in the darkest moments, there are people willing to help someone they have never met, simply because they believe everyone deserves a chance.”

You can take part in the auction here

You can also donate directly to Heba’s Master’s degree fund using her GoFundMe