Palestinian refugee refuses reward for returning wallet lost in Edinburgh with over £1,000 inside

One of the people we have been trying to help over the past 18 months is Zakaria, a recognised Palestinian refugee living in Glasgow.

His wife and three children remain trapped in Gaza, living under bombardment in a torn tent. Many members of their family have been killed since October 2023. We have spent many months pressing the Home Office and, more recently, the Foreign Office to allow his family to reunite with him in the UK. Euan Mackay of McGlashan Mackay is assisting with their legal case.

Last month, Zakaria travelled to Edinburgh with a friend. While walking through the city, he found a wallet lying on the ground.

He sent this message:

“As you know, I don’t speak English, so I have the wallet with me now. It also contains a bank card. To be honest, I don’t know how much money is in it, so we should return the wallet to its owner. If you can reach the owner of the wallet, ask him to send you his address and phone number. I have no problem going to his residence and returning his wallet. I apologise for the inconvenience.”

The wallet contained £1,050 in cash, a £1 coin, bank cards and identification.

After contacting Edinburgh Libraries and the City of Edinburgh Council, we managed to trace the owner, an elderly gentleman.

When he learned that Zakaria was a Palestinian refugee, he insisted that Zakaria should keep £200 as a gesture of thanks.

We passed on the message.

Zakaria replied:

“Thank you, but this isn’t my right; it’s his money. Thank him profusely. My happiness lies in him receiving his wallet in full.”

Think for a moment about what that meant.

Zakaria desperately needs money to pay for his son's university. His son is trying to continue his university studies in Gaza using only a mobile phone because the universities, and much of the surrounding infrastructure, have been bombed.

Yet he refused £200 without hesitation because it was not his.

The gentleman asked us to wish Zakaria well. We sent the wallet back to him by Special Delivery the following day, and Zakaria accompanied a member of our staff to the Post Office to make sure it was returned safely.

In recent days, you will have heard about the attack on five Muslims in Edinburgh and about a Muslim woman reportedly being deliberately struck by a car in England. These incidents are deeply troubling and frightening.

We fear that violence and hate crime, fuelled by those with enormous political and media influence who profit from division, will continue to rise, leaving visible minorities feeling increasingly isolated and unsafe. At a time of economic uncertainty, far-right movements thrive by encouraging people to blame immigrants rather than asking harder questions about the concentration of wealth and power.

Stories like Zakaria's remind us of a simple truth: our shared humanity is far stronger than the prejudice that seeks to divide us.

https://www.glasgowlive.co.uk/news/glasgow-news/kind-palestinian-refugee-living-glasgow-34171422