WATCH: Portsmouth student's desperate plea to help mother and sisters trapped in war-torn Gaza

Mahmoud Khalil, 29, has been living in the UK for the last two years after the graduate in international law left Gaza seeking to do his masters degree. However with the escalation in violence following the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7 he now fears for his family's safety.

Israel's military launched an air and ground campaign in Gaza following the attack which killed around 1,200 people and saw 253 others taken hostage. More than 30,000 people have been killed in Gaza since then, the territory's Hamas-run health ministry has said. It comes as problems with delivering aid to those trapped in Gaza have seen a number of people, including children, stave to death as a result. Some Israelis have also made efforts to block aid saying that Hamas needs to return the hostages it holds first.

Most of Mahmoud's family are in Egypt and Jordan, but his two sisters, Shad (17) and Noor (20) - who is a nurse - are in a camp in Rafah in Gaza with their mother, who is a teacher. They fled to the camp after losing their family home in Khan Younis as a result of the conflict. 

Mahmoud explained that his sister Shad has dreams of becoming a doctor after their father died in the war of 2014 as a result of a lack of treatment in hospital after being hit by a shell, and Mahmoud said he lived in fear over the family of his family, feeling helpless that he can't do anything for them.

Speaking to The News he said: “Many of my friends that have lost entire families and I fear I will have the same"

Mahmoud, who is due to start his masters degree, said he felt very welcome in Portsmouth after being granted asylum and when he resumes his studies he will share his story with his follow students.

To hear his story in his own words, watch the video embedded in this email.