We cannot sleep.. we don't know if our family will make it through the night

First Minister's warzone fears

- PAUL HUTCHEON

HUMZA Yousaf has told of his agony at not knowing if his in-laws will survive in the Gaza warzone.

The First Minister said he and his wife couldn't sleep with the worry of whether their family will make it through the night".

Yousaf spoke out as it was revealed they were "trapped" in Gaza after terrorists killed hundreds of Israelis.

His wife Nadia Maged El-Nakla's parents are visiting relatives in territory Israel's Prime Minister has promised will be reduced to "rubble".

The Middle East is on the brink of war after Hamas launched a deadly assault on Israel. The death toll has soared to more than 1110 after Israel launched a furious response.

Yousaf's in-laws, Elizabeth and Maged El-Nakla, are in Gaza to see their son, his wife and their four children.

The youngest child is two months old and Yousaf's wife also has a 93-year-old grandmother.

He said: "As many will know, my wife is Palestinian, her mum and dad, my in-laws, who live in Dundee, live in Scotland, they've been in Gaza and are currently trapped in Gaza, I'm afraid.

His wife's parents went to the father in law's "elderly and frail" mother when the Hamas attack took place.

The First Minister said: "Despite the best efforts of the British Foreign Office, nobody, nobody can guarantee them safe passage anywhere.

"So I'm in a situation where, frankly, night by night, day by day, we don't know whether or not my mother in law and father in law - who have nothing to do, as most Gazans don't, with Hamas or with any terror attack - whether they will make it through the night or not."

He said he and Nadia were having sleepless nights due to worry for her parents, adding: "We cannot sleep - we are constantly watching our phones.