As the hunger crisis deepens in Gaza, our team is doing all that they can to deliver humanitarian relief despite extraordinary obstacles. In recent weeks, AFSC and partners have provided over 4,000 meals daily to displaced Palestinians.
Since March 2, the Israeli government has blocked aid— food, medicine, and other vital supplies—from entering Gaza as it continues its extensive bombing. Our efforts grow more urgent by the day as more people face starvation and supplies dwindle.
In late May, an organization staffed by security forces and created by Israel and the U.S. attempted to distribute aid while experienced global humanitarian organizations were denied access to Gaza. This is an extraordinary breach of humanitarian practice. Also, the Israeli military recently opened fire on starving people waiting for food, killing at least 30 people at these militarized sites.
While the overall situation remains dire, our team has found ways to persist in their relief efforts. Thanks to our longstanding partnerships, they are continuing to procure food and other essentials from within Gaza. Last month, our staff located two community kitchens that still had some raw materials. These kitchens agreed to cook what they had so we could deliver hot meals to displaced people in makeshift camps and schools converted to shelters.
In addition to providing hot meals, AFSC has worked with local farmers in Gaza to distribute fresh vegetables to displaced families. We have also continued to provide drinking water, milk and diapers for babies, hygiene kits, and more.
We are so grateful to everyone who has supported our efforts. Every meal distributed, every hygiene kit delivered, and every jug of clean water provided is crucial in this moment. As our staff member Serena says, “We are talking about very essential life-saving services and supplies. Water and food are not aid. They are the foundation of life.”
The work of our staff and partners is far from easy. There are grave risks involved in all that they do.
“These past months since the ceasefire was broken have been more brutal than the previous year and a half combined,” Serena says. “But the most difficult part has been the repeated forced displacement orders—more than 80 evacuation orders in 17 months.”
Every day, we continue to hold Serena, Firas, and all Palestinians in the Light as they face the unimaginable. We remain committed to doing all that we can to bring an end to this preventable crisis.
I hope you keep standing with us. To see more of this vital work in action, please watch the video above. And please keep up your calls and emails to Congress to demand humanitarian access for Gaza to save lives.
Thank you for your ongoing support.
