Germany’s Hanover plans to take in 20 children from Gaza and Israel

The German city of Hanover wants to take in up 20 children from the Gaza Strip and Israel who have been particularly affected by the ongoing conflict, Mayor Belit Onay announced on Thursday.

“We want to open up this opportunity,” Onay said at a press conference in the town hall.

He said the aim is to enable children who need medical, psychological or social support to “recover and get back on their feet under Hanover’s protection.”

The initiative is supported by the president of the State Association of Jewish Communities in Lower Saxony, Michael Fürst, the chairman of the Palestinian Community in Hanover, Yazid Shammout, and the state’s anti-Semitism commissioner, Gerhard Wegner.

Onay said many of the city’s residents, some of whom have family ties to the region, were moved by the suffering of people in Gaza and Israel. The aim is to send a signal of humanitarian support to the state and federal government, he added.

The mayor emphasized that while the city can provide accommodation and support on the ground, it needs political backing from the federal government for entry procedures, selection and medical coordination.

Other cities have already expressed an interest in hosting similar programmes, Onay said, meaning more could follow suit once the federal government has created the legal framework

“I am firmly convinced that we will not remain the only ones,” he said.