A family of Palestinian origin who drowned off the south coast of England last week will be buried in a Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon, according to another family member who lives there.
Hassan Al Khawas, 55, his wife Zeina Alayn, 37, and daughter Sara, 14, drowned in Shoreham after getting into difficulties in the sea. Another daughter Sajad, 6, died a few days later in hospital.
Mr Al Khawas – who is known to relatives as Hossam – and his wife were British citizens born in the Rashidiya refugee camp in southern Lebanon, which shelters more than 30,000 displaced Palestinian families.
Sussex Police said the deaths are being treated as a tragic accident, with no third-party involvement.
A ceremony of condolences has been held in London and in the family home in Rashidiya. Hassan’s brother, Jalal Al Khawas, who lives in Rashidiya, told The National the family are now waiting for the repatriation to Lebanon.
“It’s important for us. His mother is old, she is over 90 years old, she wants to see him one last time,” he said. “She hadn’t seen him in a long time. She wants to see him. It has been very hard on her.”
Mr Al Khawas and his family had not been to Lebanon in three years because of the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, which particularly affects southern Lebanon. Rashidiya camp has also repeatedly been targeted or damaged by Israeli airstikes. “He wanted to come and we told him not to, we told him to wait,” his brother said.
The family has been holding condolences in their home in Rashidiya camp while they wait for the bodies to arrive. Jalal said friends living in the UK had also come to comfort the family. “We’ve had Lebanese and Palestinians from London coming to our house. They were crying. Their wives were crying. They told us how Hossam always looked out for them,” he said.
The two girls, he said, “had lovely life”, with Sara attending Ellen Wilkinson School in West London. “They were doing well at school, their parents cared for them,” he said.
The couple’s two other children, a 15-year old girl and 10-year old boy, are being taken care of by uncles in London. Jalal said: “We will work on finding the right path for them. It will be better for them to stay in London.”
But he has huge concerns about the impact the tragedy night have on them. “We hope to help the children. They were witnesses to what happened. The boy saw his father drown. This is going to be very difficult for them,” he said.
There has been an increase in water-related deaths in the UK this year due to rising temperatures and a number of heatwaves. Nineteen people died in one week in May, many of them children and teenagers.
The latest deaths have had a huge impact on the community in Shoreham, who held a vigil on the beach for the family on Sunday. People came with paddle-boards and kayaks as part of a commemoration ceremony.
Among them was Wesley Horscroft, who attended on behalf of paddlers in the Kingston beach community.
He said he had originally planned to go out alone and “put some flowers on the water” to honour the family, before he decided to invite others. “It's kind of grown and a lot of people wanted to turn up to do the same,” he told the BBC.
Sara Al Khawas's school also paid tribute to the “sweet” and “well-liked” pupil. “Sara was a sweet girl, well-liked by staff and students, and she will be greatly missed,” a statement on the Ellen Wilkinson School website read.
“Our thoughts and heartfelt condolences are with her family, friends, and all those affected. We are also thinking of her sister and loved ones at this extremely difficult time.”
