Qatar Red Crescent Society (QRCS) is launching a new project to prepare and distribute 88,912 hot meals to displaced families in camps across Gaza, at a total cost of $489,016.
Dr Akram Nassar, head of QRCS’ representation office in Gaza, said: “The ultimate goal of all our relief projects in Gaza is to actively help alleviate the impact of the worsening humanitarian disaster, notably the severe food crisis”.
He highlighted QRCS’ commitment to delivering hot meals directly where they are needed most, to ensure better food security and humanitarian conditions for the population. Asaad, a beneficiary of the project, stood outside his tent at a camp of internally displaced people (IDPs) in central Gaza City, gazing at the pale faces of his children, as they gathered around a hot meal that they had for months been desperate for.
As the head of a family of eleven, mostly children, the father described the camp’s living conditions as “totally catastrophic”. He said his children had not eaten rice or chicken since last Ramadan because of food shortages and skyrocketing prices in Gaza’s markets.
With a look of relief, the 43-year-old added, “This hot meal will meet my family’s minimum needs, at a time when we cannot even secure our day-to-day sustenance. It will save my children from the bitter hunger that we feel every single day at the IDP camp”.
Asaad’s story is one of many stories of suffering lived by thousands of families under blockade.
Amid a serious humanitarian crisis affecting two million people in Gaza, QRCS stands out as one of the biggest humanitarian service providers, working hard to bridge critical gaps in health care, food, shelter, water and sanitation, livelihoods, and other essential needs.
Focusing on food security, QRCS is determined to continue supporting that vital sector by restoring and operating bakeries, distributing food parcels and ready-to-eat meals, and providing therapeutic nutrition for malnourished children.
The total cost required to implement these interventions exceeds QR 16.5mn. Donors can make these plans a reality by paying their Zakat and charities via QRCS’s website (www.qrcs.org.qa), mobile app (QRCS), donor service hotline (66666364), home donation collection hotline (33998898), or donation collection desks/agents at malls and shopping centres.
