Maher Al-Anqar sat watching his nephew suffer, and the video clip – filmed by an independent correspondent for CBC News – captured every scream and spasm as 10-year-old Adam Abu Ajwa begged for help after the house he was sheltering in with his parents and siblings in Khan Younis, Gaza, was hit by an airstrike on January 17.

Adam suffered third-degree burns, and his older sister Zeina, 26, survived with burns and broken bones after being trapped under the rubble for hours; they were the only ones in the house who survived. Their mother Hana and older brother Amr died and were buried in the yard of Nasser Hospital, one of the main hospitals in central Gaza Strip.

Al-Anqar's mouth trembled with each scream as he watched doctors treating the boy's wounds without anesthesia. He told CBC News on February 4 that he had applied to get his sister and her children out of Gaza under the special immigration procedures program for extended family members of Palestinian Canadians.

They were waiting for news when their house was bombed, Al-Anqar said: "It's hard... it's hard to watch this."

"We are sitting here... in a safe place in Canada. I have my children with me, but my sisters and my niece and nephew are not safe. And we don't know what to do or how to help them." And how to get them out of there.

The federal government launched the special program last month after Palestinian Canadians had pleaded for months for help in getting their loved ones out of Gaza.

The program issues visas for up to 1,000 Gaza residents, allowing them to seek refuge in Canada for three years if their families are willing to support them financially during that time, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Minister Marc Miller said that the 1,000 application limit is not a fixed cap and can be extended.

Meanwhile, the Canadian Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Department says that nearly 1,000 applications under the program have reached the second stage and are awaiting final acceptance decisions.

About 1,200 people were killed in Israel on October 7 during the attacks led by Hamas, including many Canadians. Israeli officials said 253 others were held hostage, with about 130 not yet returned home. Palestinian officials say more than 27,000 people have been killed in the Israeli military response to the Hamas-led attacks.

A spokesman for Miller told CBC News that no one registered with Canada has been able to escape Gaza under the new program. This has left many Palestinian Canadians eagerly awaiting word that their loved ones have been allowed to leave – or that they have joined the growing list of victims in the Israel-Hamas war.

Al-Anqar said he applied on behalf of his sister and her children on January 9, when the program opened. Hana and Amr died only eight days after their application was submitted to the Canadian Immigration and Citizenship Department.

He said he now hopes to get his niece and nephew out of the war zone before it's too late, but he has not yet heard any response from the federal government regarding the status of the applications.

He added: "You try to help, but the whole process or system does not help you, whether here or there, no one has done anything yet."

Meanwhile, Tamer Jarada from Calgary said he lost 16 family members since the war began. He noted he applied to bring his remaining family from Gaza to Canada on January 9, including his pregnant sister who was due to give birth on February 5.

Jarada reached the second stage of the application process, which allowed him to apply for a temporary residence visa for his sister. But he said he has not heard from Canadian immigration authorities about the next steps for weeks.

He continued, "Every time I call her, she cries. And begs me to help her," "I try my best to help her, but my government doesn't listen, and doesn't do what it's supposed to do."

In an interview with Rosemary Barton on CBC aired Sunday, Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said she and Miller are working hard on this issue.

She added: "We have committed to helping these families, and we know they are also eagerly waiting to leave," which is why we will continue to pressure the Israeli authorities and also the Egyptian government, from whom we also need permission."

Joly said getting people out of Gaza is a top priority for the government.

She said, "You have my personal commitment, and Canadians have my personal commitment, that this is a very important priority."

In a January 9 interview with David Cochrane, host of CBC's "Power and Politics," Miller said the government cannot provide "guarantees" to people seeking its help to escape Gaza. She pointed to ongoing problems accessing the Rafah Crossing between Gaza and Egypt.

She said, "These are factors beyond the control of Canadian authorities." "In addition to these two parties (Israel and Egypt), Hamas, a terrorist organization that has committed unspeakable atrocities, has a say and sometimes plays games at the same border crossing."

Miller also referenced the difficulties Canadian authorities faced evacuating Canadians from the pocket in November 2023, citing how the border crossing would be closed on very short notice.

She added: "So there is no guarantee people will be able to get out, but the effort is worth it." "We believe this is the humanitarian thing to do for Canadians who have connections with people simply trying to survive."

Back at Nasser Hospital complex in Khan Younis, Zeina Abu Ajwa spends her days sitting beside her brother's bed, easing his suffering every time his dressings are changed.

She said, "He suffers third-degree burns on his legs, so daily changes are very important. But that causes a lot of pain."

She said that on the day of the attack, it took hours for someone to come to help them.

She added, "We lived nearly 10 hours of horror and pain. I stayed under the rubble for eight hours." "My brother was outside bleeding in the open."

Al-Anqar said he wants to see more than just expressions of sympathy from the federal government.

He added, "Saving lives must be the top priority of any government or any official." "My mother was destroyed because she couldn't say the last word goodbye to her daughter…

"Parents expect their children to bury them, not the other way around."