Neighbors rally behind Palestinian restaurant owner who lost family in Gaza

PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."As the conflict between Israel and Hamas rages on, diaspora communities around the world watch in anguish. That includes the owner of Bawadi Mediterranean Grill, Khalid Mekki, whose niece was recently killed by an Israeli airstrike in Gaza.

The Monday crowd at Bawadi had gathered for a fundraiser – with Mekki donating 50 percent of the night's profits to the United Nations' relief agency.

Mekki came to the U.S. 26 years ago and has a PhD in industrial engineering. But he opened Bawadi Mediterranean Grill in 2014 to celebrate his culture.

"We created this little Palestine restaurant," Mekki told Morning Edition. "I have many customers, they come and say, 'I don't have to go back, I can come to Bawadi.'"

But lately, Mekki's mind has been back in his birthplace, Gaza. Over the past month, he's struggled for updates from his six sisters and two brothers there. And when he does get news, it's often bad, he says.

Recently his niece was killed, alongside her husband and three of their daughters, in an Israeli airstrike. Israel continues to use airstrikes to try to root out Hamas militants following that group's October 7 attacks. And the military says the civilian deaths are a consequence of Hamas militants embedding themselves among the civilian population."...