On May 4th, Zena (8 months old) was medically evacuated to Jordan alongside her mother, Anwar, and her oldest sister, Fatima (8), as facilitated by Children are Not Numbers. Zena had a hole in her heart, a result of a congenital heart condition (large patent ductus arteriosus, “PDA”) that created a number of additional health complications for her, including severe malnutrition. 

Zena only weighed 4.4 kg [10 lbs] at the time we came into contact with her family, at 5 months old. Over the following months, Melissa stayed in communication with Zena’s mother, Anwar, and closely monitored her case. We watched as Zena was repeatedly readmitted to the hospital, only to be discharged back to the tent she shared with her parents, her sister Maria (3), her brother Muhammed (7), and her sister Fatima (8). 

During Zena’s hospitalizations, fund co-directors Melissa and Charlene did their best to provide food and basic necessities for Anwar as she sat beside her daughter in an overcrowded, severely under-resourced hospital, helplessly watching her little girl fight for her life. At the same time, we arranged food deliveries for the children waiting anxiously in the tent for the return of their mother and baby sister.

On May 14th, Zena’s surgery was successfully completed, but she continues to struggle to gain weight and now requires the care of additional specialists. Doctors expect that her recovery will require several more months of treatment. 

Unfortunately, Anwar was not able to take her husband and two other children to Jordan. Under any circumstances, prolonged separation from small children is devastating for both mothers and kids, but to leave behind two small children who have already endured two and a half years of war, displacement, fear, and exhaustion, while carrying the constant burden of worrying about Zena’s fragile health, is nearly unbearably difficult. 

Meanwhile, Atta cares for Maria (3) and Muhammed (6) on his own in their tent in Gaza. He does not have a smartphone, making it difficult for Anwar to regularly see or speak with her children. The family continues to live in extremely harsh conditions. As the summer heat intensifies across Gaza, the children face growing risks of dehydration as well as exposure to insects and rodents. The daily struggle to survive is immense, compounded by the absence of their beloved mother. 

For as long as we are able, we will do our best to make sure that at the very least this family does not go hungry.

Please help us to continue supporting families like Zena’s. If you would like to support Zena’s siblings who remain in Gaza, you may designate a donation of any amount to “Baby Zena.”