SNP Leader’s Wife Tearfully Interrupts Interview Fearing Family Killed In Gaza

Press Association via AP Images

During a Press Association interview on Thursday, Scottish First Minister Humza Yousaf was interrupted as his wife rushed to him in tears, worried that her family in Gaza might have been killed in an Israeli strike.

After watching a live Al-Jazeera broadcast in another room at their home, Nadia El-Nakla identified the bomb-stricken neighbourhood as her family’s. Despite losing initial contact, she later ascertained her family’s safety.

The couple has been vocal about their fears for her family, now in Gaza amid rising hostilities. Her parents, Elizabeth and Maged El-Nakla, had travelled to Gaza last week to visit relatives when violence erupted, leading to a declared “siege” and bombardment on the territory by the Israeli military.

Yousaf was scheduled for media talks ahead of the Scottish National Party’s conference when the emotional episode unfolded.

Despite the distressing interruption, Yousaf resumed the interview, clarifying that his wife “recognized the neighbourhood” being hit as Deir Al-Balah, where her family are currently. El-Nakla tried contacting her mother who did not reply at first, sparking her panic.

Highlighting the grim reality confronting many families, El-Nakla shared with the BBC Scotland on Wednesday, her parents worry that “they are going to die.” She described the ongoing ordeal as “a nightmare.”

Her wider family who live in Gaza include an elderly grandmother, her brother, who is a doctor, and his four children, the youngest of which is just four weeks old.