SNP leader’s wife says family injured in Gaza drone attack

Two-year-old cousin was left ‘lot of shrapnel under their skin’, says Nadia El-Nakla

The wife of SNP and Scottish first minister Humza Yousaf said three of her young cousins in Gaza were injured in an Israeli drone strike.

Nadia El-Nakla said her two-year-old cousin received the worst wound after the family was struck by shrapnel from the missile while sitting outside their home.

She said her mother had called her with the news “really shaken and really upset” and the two-year-old had “a lot of shrapnel under their skin.”

Ms El-Nakla’s parents, Elizabeth and Maged, remain trapped in Gaza after travelling from their home in Dundee to visit relatives earlier this month.

The 39-year-old said her mother, a retired nurse, had been treating the family for their injuries due to the lack of hospital space.

“My uncle, aunt and their three children were just sitting outside and they just got hit by a drone. Thankfully, the drone hit off a metal fire extinguisher and now my two year old cousin is covered in shrapnel,” she told LBC.

She added: “This is affecting everyone in Gaza. My mum’s crying and she’s a retired nurse so is removing the shrapnel. She said don’t worry, they’re okay. It’s just in their skin. But she can’t go to hospital as there’s absolutely no way to get that kind of treatment.”

Mr Yousaf told BBC Breakfast that his family were “just torn apart with worry as you can imagine, because their supplies [in Gaza] are low”.

He added: “Yesterday an Israeli missile hit a house across the road from my mother-in-law and father-in-law’s house and it shattered every window... broke all the mirrors and gave them a real fright. And so my mother-in-law told me she just didn’t sleep a wink last night with worry.”

Scotland’s first minister Humza Yousaf and his wife Nadia El-Nakla (PA Wire)

It comes as Mr Yousaf called for an independent investigation into the bombing of a Gaza hospital, calling it a “complete and utter human tragedy”.

Scotland’s first minister also told BBC Breakfast there needs to be an “honest broker” in the Middle East to end the “perpetual cycle of violence” and secure peace between Israel and Palestine.

The SNP leader also called on Rishi Sunak’s government to work with international partners to set up a refugee programme for those fleeing the hostilities in the Middle East.

Mr Yousaf urged the Israeli government not to use “collective punishment” against the Palestinian people for the actions of Hamas, which he said “can never be justified”.

The first minister said the UK government should “immediately begin work” on the creation of a refugee resettlement scheme. “And when they do so, Scotland is willing to be the first country in the UK to offer safety and sanctuary to those caught up in these terrible attacks,” he said.

Mr Sunak’s official spokesman said he was “not aware of the SNP approaching the government formally” about the refugee scheme call. The No 10 official said the government’s “first focus” was on reopening the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt.

Mr Sunak could travel to Israel as soon as Thursday amid growing concerns about the conflict, according to multiple reports. Downing Street would not comment publicly on the PM’s travel plans.

It would follow visits by Joe Biden and German chancellor Olaf Scholz amid fears the conflict could spiral into a wider regional issue.

Meanwhile, foreign secretary James Cleverly has said the UK and its allies will investigate the “devastating” destruction of a hospital in Gaza City.

At least 500 people have been killed after a huge blast struck the building, according to the Gaza health ministry, run by Hamas. “The UK will work with our allies to find out what has happened and protect innocent civilians in Gaza.”