A FORMER student at the University of Glasgow has been killed in Gaza alongside her six-month old baby, husband and two brothers.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) confirmed on Twitter/X that its staff member Dima Abdullatif Mohammed Alhaj, 29, had died.
The director-general of the WHO Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus commented: “My colleagues and I are devastated – we have lost one of our own in Gaza today.
“Our young @WHOoPt colleague Dima Alhaj was tragically killed alongside her six-month-old baby, her husband and two brothers.
“Reportedly multiple other family members sheltering in the same house were also killed. I have no words to describe our grief.”
University of Glasgow principal Professor Sir Anton Muscatelli said he shared the grief of her employees.
Writing on social media, he said: “This is one utterly tragic news story in the midst of thousands of similar stories of grief and despair.
“Dima was an Erasmus student in @UofGlasgow a few years ago – the @WHODG’s message says it all.
“We share their grieving for one of our own. Ceasefire and release hostages now.”
It was reported this morning that the Israeli government has agreed to a temporary ceasefire with Hamas in exchange for the release of hostages.
Journalist and documentary maker Liam O’Hare said Alhaj had stayed with his parents while she was in Scotland.
He said: “She and her husband Mohammed had moved four times during the attack on Gaza and said last week that she hoped her son Abood would live to see brighter days.”
Dr Rik Peeperkorn, the WHO representative in Palestine said: “She was a wonderful person with a radiant smile, cheerful, positive, respectful.
“She was a true team player. Her work was crucial, and she had been requested to take on even more responsibilities to support the Gaza suboffice and team.
“This is such a painful loss for all of us. We share our deepest condolences with her mother and father (a long-serving medical specialist in Gaza), her family, and her many friends.”
