Even after 26 days in a country at war, Salma Abuzaiter still believes the boom of an air strike is the happy sound of fireworks.

The 8-year-old from Brantford was visiting family in Gaza City with her father when war erupted, bringing an end to sun-filled days playing outdoors with her cousins.

Her mother, Wesam Abuzaiter, has desperately been trying to get Salma safely out since the first day of fighting.

She says officials with the Department of Foreign Affairs have not been able to find a way to evacuate Salma without her father, Hassan Abuzuiter, a pediatric emergency room physician who is working around the clock to treat those injured in the weeks-long conflict.

On Saturday, Israel pounded Gaza with more airstrikes, killing at least 72 Palestinians.

“At night, I haven’t been sleeping,” says Abuzaiter, a pharmacist at Brantford General Hospital. “Sometimes I walk through the house and cry, or I just stand at the door of Salma’s room. The last thing I wanted was for Salma to be living like this.”

Abuzaiter, her husband and their three children, Yousef, 12, Mohammed, 10, and Salma, are Canadian citizens. They have lived in Brantford since immigrating in 2009.

Abuzaiter, who grew up in Gaza, says the family is proudly Canadian — they received their citizenship five months ago — and she is happy her children can safely play on the lawn of their suburban brick home.

“To me,” she says, “Canada means freedom.”

Salma travelled to Gaza at the beginning of June with her father, who has a contract position at the European General Hospital in Gaza City. The 40-year-old physician returns periodically so he can retain his medical licence while he applies for full-time positions at Ontario hospitals.

Abuzaiter says the visit was an opportunity for Salma to spend time with family she rarely sees, including three grandparents. It also helped the family financially; Abuzaiter says full-time childcare for Salma would have been too expensive, given the family’s single income. Her two sons are able to stay home alone while she works.

And while she worried about Salma being so far from home, Abuzaiter says there was no suspicion of war when the family made their plans.

“And he (Hassan) told me not to worry, that if something happens we know that Canada is going to help.”

Abuzaiter says she has repeatedly asked the Foreign Affairs for assistance getting Salma back home.

Her husband, who has been working 24-hour shifts in the hospital, has said he will stay in Gaza to treat wounded Palestinians. Hassan has saved dozens of lives, including infants and children, and believes he can save many more because of his expertise in emergency medicine, Abuzaiter says.

“The situation is so bad right now the hospital is asking anyone with medical expertise — anyone — to come and help,” she says. “I feel that Canada should be supporting and be proud of one of their citizens who is helping those who need it.”

A July 13 statement said consular officials and the Standing Rapid Deployment Team had organized an evacuation of Canadians from Gaza and escorted 47 citizens and family members to Jordan.

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Abuzaiter says Canadian officials advised her to send Salma alone on the bus, a five-hour ride from Gaza City across the border to Jordan. She believed this was unsafe, especially since airlines flying out of Jordan don’t allow unaccompanied minors.

Salma’s uncle, a Palestinian citizen, is prepared to accompany her to Jordan, but needs help from Canadian officials to organize the appropriate paperwork to get across the border into Egypt. Abuzaiter is prepared to fly to Cairo to meet her daughter.

Abuzaiter says she heard from Canadian officials on Friday, who said their office in Ramallah is too busy to help.

A Foreign Affairs spokesperson confirmed Saturday that consular officials are assisting a family in Ramallah, but would release no further details. Spokesperson Béatrice Fénelon said Canada’s ability to help is “becoming increasingly limited” in Gaza, and that Canadians had been advised to leave on July 9.

NDP Foreign Affairs critic Paul Dewar (Ottawa Centre) told the Star Saturday he believes it is the government’s responsibility to help a young Canadian get safe passage. “The question for our government is: Are they willing to help? And if not, why not?” he says, noting Canada has a fully staffed embassy in Israel.

“This is about the safety and security of a young Canadian who is in a very vulnerable circumstance. I think we should do what we can to get her out.”

Abuzaiter says her family is protecting Salma as best they can from the harsh realities of war. Her grandmother tells her the bombings in their family’s neighbourhood are fireworks in honour of Salma’s visit.

So far, the little girl, who is put to bed early, before it gets dark and shelling intensifies, believes the story.

Abuzaiter, who knows well what it’s like to be a child in a conflict zone, wants Salma safely home in her pink bedroom. Canada, she says, is a place where children are allowed to keep their innocence.

“I chose Canada as my country. I will do everything for Canada, because it is my country. And because it is my country, I expect Canada to do everything for me.”

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