An Irish-Palestinian man, who is based in Co Kildare, has been told his two children will not make it across the border from Gaza into Egypt today after an apparent administrative error.
Khalid El Estal has been told by the Department of Foreign Affairs here that they did not make it through the Rafah Crossing, despite their names being on a list of those who can cross and he is hopeful that they will now be able to leave Gaza tomorrow.
Mr El Estal's son Ali will turn four next week and his daughter Sara is one.
He last saw her when she was just three months old.
The children are currently with his brother-in-law.
He understands they will leave the crossing but stay close by in southern Gaza overnight before attempting to cross again tomorrow.
Mr El Estal, 30, is deeply grieving for his wife Ashwak who died from her injuries following the shelling of Gaza.
He said being reunited with his children is the only thing that gives him hope at the moment.
Now that there is a delay, he is afraid about what will happen next.
"My wife, she was very beautiful. She was the light of my life. She was everything to me," he said.
He said that she instructed him to look after the kids should anything happen to her
"I will always tell them about their mother. I will never stop doing that. That's the only thing I am sure about," he added.
Mr El Estal said he had lost a lot in the last month.
He said: "She will want me to be strong for them...and for her, she would never want me to do anything bad, to lose hope."
He is currently living in Naas, where he is keeping in contact with his brother-in-law and the Department of Foreign Affairs for any news as to when his young family will make it to Egypt.
Mr El Estal grew up in Belfast where he went to primary school, and in recent years has been working in Saudi Arabia, before returning to Ireland.
Additional reporting: Cian McCormack
