HELP THIS KNITTING CIRCLE KEEP BABIES IN GAZA WARM BY SPONSORING THEM TO MAKE HANDMADE BOOTIES & HATS (KLAKEEL) MADE WITH DIGNITY AND DONATED WITH LOVE TO NEWBORNS IN SHELTERS, HOSPITALS, AND CAMPS.

Please watch the video of Dr Ahmed Al Farra, Head of the Maternity Ward Clinic by Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, receiving 274 booties knitted over this Winter..

Last month, UNICEF reported an unimaginable 75% increase in newborn babies dying on the first day of life, warning that “thousands of mothers who’ve been left starving are now giving birth to underweight or premature babies who die in intensive care units or struggle to survive acute malnutrition”. As cold weather continues to ravage besieged Gaza, newborns and pre-term babies are at great risk of harm and even death from hypothermia.

As part of a Small Steps Project, Hana, a talented woman from Gaza, has brought together a group of women on the ground to create hand-made baby booties to keep these precious babies as warm as possible, whilst also enabling them to support their own families with autonomy.

Here is a message from the lovely Hana, organiser of the knitting initiative:

My name is Hana Om Mohammed. I’m 28 years old and live in Khan Younis, Gaza.

My mother taught me and my sisters how to hand-knit baby booties so I could earn a living with dignity. I graduated from Al Aqsa University and dream of continuing my education with a Master’s in English Translation.

There are many babies here who need warm booties. And they used to be very popular, but now, no one around me can afford them.

How does it work? You choose how many handmade booties/hats you want us to make for the newborns and then we make them and then distribute them to those that need them most — at hospitals, clinics, and shelters.

We will keep a record of the names and places where each gift is delivered. And whenever possible, I’ll take a photo of the lucky baby’s feet, wrapped in love.

🧦£5 buys a baby a pair of booties

🧣 £9 buys a baby a matching booties-and-hat set

🧶£12 a month as a monthly donation, pays for enough wool for 15 booties

Please feel free to sponsor as many items as you like, or you can make a monthly donation, so I can keep going. Profits go back into materials and getting other women to join the knitting initiative.

Thank you for your kindness.

Hana