Home Affairs Correspondent
More than £27,000 has been raised for the two surviving children of a Palestinian family whose four relatives drowned off the Sussex coast, as an outpouring of public support has contrasted sharply with racist and Islamophobic abuse directed at the family online.
The GoFundMe appeal for the Al-Khawas family had raised £27,635 from 596 donors by September 10, exceeding its original £20,000 target. The money has helped cover the repatriation of the four bodies to Lebanon and funeral costs, while providing financial, welfare and educational support for the surviving children.
The bodies have since been returned to Lebanon for burial. Relatives in Lebanon were unable to travel to Britain because of visa restrictions, according to the Palestine Forum in Britain, which helped organise the repatriation.
Hussam El-Khawas, 55, his wife Zeina Alayan, 37, and their daughters Sara, 14, and Saja, six, died after getting into difficulty in the sea near Shoreham-by-Sea, West Sussex, on August 18.
The family were British citizens of Palestinian origin with roots in the Rashidieh refugee camp in southern Lebanon. Hussam and Zeina were born in the camp before settling in Britain, while their daughters were born in London.
The tragedy began when Sara encountered difficulties in the water and her father entered the sea to help her. As the situation deteriorated, Zeina and Saja also went into the water.
Hussam, Zeina and Sara were pulled from the sea and pronounced dead.
Saja was rescued and taken to hospital in critical condition. She was resuscitated but suffered a hypoxic brain injury and died at Evelina London Children’s Hospital three days later, on August 21.
An inquest into the deaths opened at Horsham Coroner’s Court on September 2. The hearing was told that Saja had suffered the brain injury before her death, while Sussex Police confirmed that their investigation remained ongoing.
Police have said their review of CCTV and initial witness accounts indicated that the deaths were a tragic accident, with no evidence of third-party involvement.
The inquest has been adjourned until March 2027.
The family’s deaths prompted an outpouring of support, with donations coming from Palestinians, Arabs and members of the wider British public.
Adnan Hmidan, chair of the Palestine Forum in Britain, described the response as “truly humbling”.
By August 25, the fundraiser had already passed its £20,000 target, reaching more than £22,000. It had risen to around £23,000 by the time the inquest opened and subsequently passed £27,000.
The fundraising response came as the family was also subjected to a torrent of racist, anti-Palestinian and Islamophobic abuse online.
Social media users mocked the family’s appearance and clothing, questioned their ability to swim and attacked their Palestinian and Muslim backgrounds. Some comments appeared to celebrate their deaths.
Anti-racism campaign group Stand Up To Racism said it was “horrified” by the comments.
“We have been horrified by racist, anti-Palestinian and Islamophobic comments celebrating this tragedy,” the group said.
It said the deaths of a family should be met with “compassion; not hatred”, while warning that hostile rhetoric towards refugees, Muslims and migrants had contributed to an environment in which some people felt emboldened to express racism openly.
The abuse contrasted with the response from the community, which gathered in Shoreham days after the deaths to remember the family.
Dozens of people attended a memorial service at St Julian’s Church in Shoreham on August 23, including East Worthing and Shoreham MP Tom Rutland. The service also recognised the emergency responders who attended the incident.
The fundraiser remains open to support the two surviving children, who are now being cared for by relatives following the deaths of their parents and sisters.
