British Public Raises £4.5m aid

An emergency appeal for people affected by the conflict in Gaza has raised £4.5m in less than 24 hours. The Disasters Emergency Committee announcement came as the Stop the War coalition is holding a march for Gaza through central London on Saturday.
The DEC launched its Gaza Crisis Appeal on Friday evening. The British government saying it would match the first £2m of public donations.
Saleh Saeed, chief executive of DEC – an umbrella organisation bringing together 13 UK aid charities to deal with international crises -thanked the British public and praised the “amazing generosity of the British public”. “The funds are desperately needed, with on-going fighting in Gaza creating an unbearable situation for families and children. Hundreds of thousands of people have been forced to leave their homes, the healthcare system is on the verge of collapse and many people have little or no clean water,” he added.
“Despite the end of the ceasefire, aid is getting through and many of our member agencies are still working on the ground. But with the scale of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, they urgently need more money to scale up their life-saving work.” The today’s march will pass the US embassy, ending in Hyde Park. Up to 20,000 people are expected to take part, police told the BBC.