‘Significant donation’ made by Mohamed Salah to aid Gaza residents, according to sources.
In the midst of the intensifying battle that has already cost thousands of lives, the 31-year-old Liverpool forward posted a video on social media on Wednesday pleading with world leaders to permit humanitarian aid into Gaza and to stop further “slaughter of innocent souls.”
Salah, the captain of the Egyptian national team and the most well-known sports figure in the Arab world, sent the message to his millions of followers in response to news of the devastating explosion at the Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital, which, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health, has killed over 400 people.
Salah remarked in the video against a pitch-black backdrop:
“It’s not always easy to speak in time like this. There has been too much violence and too much heartbreak and brutality.
“The escalations in recent weeks is unbearable to witness. All lives are sacred and must be protected.
“The massacres need to stop. Families are being turned apart.
“What’s clear now is that humanitarian aid to Gaza must be allowed immediately. The people there are in terrible conditions.
“The scenes at the hospital last night were horrifying. The people of Gaza need food, water and medical supplies urgently.
“I am calling on the world leaders to come together to prevent a further slaughter of innocent souls.
“Humanity must prevail.”
Salah has donated to the Egyptian Red Crescent in order to support those in Gaza, according to Rami Al-Nazer, the organization’s executive director, in addition to the video post, which had well over 100 million views on X by Thursday morning.
“Mohamed Salah has already made donations to provide aid to the people in Gaza. It is not something strange for Mohamed Salah to provide such aid,” he told the Al-Hekaya TV show, as quoted Ahram.
“We were approached through his business manager, and he informed us of his desire. This is not Salah’s first or only contribution to humanitarian causes. He has a history of philanthropy, and we are accustomed to it from such a prominent figure.”
The actual sum of the donation was “undisclosed but significant,” according to The Guardian.
The Sunday Times listed Liverpool’s number 11 as the seventh most philanthropic person in the UK back in 2022 after he gave more than £2.5 million of his fortune to various organisations.
Karim Abdou, the former head of security for the Egypt national team, recently commented on Salah’s kindness: “He’s paid millions and millions for sick people. He buys ambulances for the city. He helped people who are short of money to get married, pay their bills or to have surgery.”