Community & Business
26 October, 2023
‘No one wins’
ONLY moments before the recent attack on Gaza, local humanitarian Stacey Maisel left Egypt, where she was working to help refugees of war in the Middle East.
Thousands of lives have since been lost, with Palestinian gunmen from Hamas storming into the Gaza Strip border, launching the deadliest attack in the history of the conflict.
The effects of the war have torn through every country across the world, and Stacey, a Mareeba local, has already begun talks with several humanitarian groups to help protect citizens.
Taking no side, Stacey stands with the citizens of the Middle East whose lives will never be the same again.
“There will never be a ‘good side’ or ‘bad side’ because, at the end of the day, it will always be the civilians who are losing on both sides of this war,” she said.
Being Jewish, Stacey knew being in the area was dangerous and was urged by her children to return home as soon as she could.
But despite this, she never felt unsafe in any part of the Middle East and set her goal to helping anyone who was displaced during the war, whether they were Jewish or Arab.
“It sounds really crazy but I struggled to leave and I want to go back,” she said.
“My children were saying, ‘We worry about you mama because you’re a Jewish person in an Arab country where there’s conflict’ and I never want to put myself in harm’s way for my children.
“To be very transparent with you … I know I’m meant to go back and help those refugees on the ground. I am working with two organisations, and I feel I need to be there.
“If you go anywhere where people have been persecuted like the Jews have, you find home with them, and I think I really struggle not being there and helping them.”
Already in talks with Voice to the Martyrs Australia, Trauma Healing and Resource Centre and Christian Mission to Gaza, Stacey is preparing to help expedite visas for refugees on the ground and help them process their trauma.
With 10 families already pinpointed, she is determined to do what she can to help, whether that means she has to go back into the Middle East or not.
“There’s so many to bring out, but right now, we are going to bring out these 10 families, and we are planning to set them up with visas,” she said.
“So, for example, in Australia, where we have a shortage of certain skills, we can bring them across based on that or in France and Germany, who, I think will take some on.
“For me, I will be working a bit as a liaison to make sure those 10 families can get airlifted and get their paperwork done and all that misery behind the scenes.
“It’s so sad because, at the end of the day, the civilians are losing.”
Christian Mission to Gaza currently has a fundraiser to help them provide relief to refugees. To donate, please visit https://cm2g.org
