Some store owners in certain shopping malls in Istanbul will donate their earnings on Oct. 12 to Gaza to draw attention to the humanitarian crisis there.
The "Be Hope for Gaza" campaign is being carried out in cooperation with the Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH), the Sadakataşı Association, the Deniz Feneri Association and the Aziz Mahmud Hüdayi Foundation.
As part of the campaign, on Sunday, Oct. 12, store owners at Sur Yapı Metrogarden in Umraniye, Axis Kağıthane in Kağıthane and Axis Istanbul in Eyüpsultan will donate their earnings to Gaza. The malls will be decorated with Palestinian flags, and a Gaza-themed exhibition will be held.
The initiative, started with the spirit of solidarity among tradespeople, aims to expand across Türkiye and evolve into a wider aid mobilization.
Visitors will also be able to make donations at the "Charity Bazaar," which will be set up in the malls on Oct. 11.
Campaign coordinator Ömer Faruk Serdar said that the campaign was launched in response to a call from tradespeople.
Serdar emphasized the sensitivity of Istanbul merchants to the atrocities in Gaza and said: "Our awareness campaign, titled 'A Heart Bridge from Usküdar to Gaza,' has inspired many tradespeople across our country. This campaign has attracted significant attention. Under the Gaza theme, we reached very different groups. Following this work, our new campaign focused not on tradespeople but on shopping malls. Store owners who heard about our initiative in Usküdar reached out to us. Within a short period of about two weeks, our awareness campaign in three malls has already reached 73 stores."
Serdar also noted that 27 nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) will participate in the "Charity Bazaar" event. "There will also be art exhibitions, workshops and children’s art activities. We believe the public will give strong support to this effort," he said.
Store owner Ömer Sultan Gümüşbaş stated that he will gladly donate a day’s earnings to Gaza during the campaign on Oct. 11-12.
Gümüşbaş added: "We see the lives in Gaza. By sharing our resources with them, we are obliged to support them."
