Our ongoing commitment to the people of Gaza
We have worked in the Occupied Palestinian Territory since 1997 and have a well-established local team in Gaza. During this current massacre, we have been compelled to suspend our long-term programming, to focus all our efforts and resources on lifesaving aid distribution.
Our team and local partners in Gaza continue to do everything that we can to deliver aid, despite facing the same challenges as the communities we support.
For the first year-and-a-half, we distributed hot meals and desperately needed clean water to people in shelters. To help combat the spread of disease, we have set up portable toilets and provided hygiene kits to displaced people.
We have organised games and performances to help support children’s mental health and provide a momentary distraction from the horrors they are enduring.
Before October 2023, Islamic Relief supported 8,750 orphans in Gaza through our Orphan Sponsorship Programme. We now support over 21,000 children.
How we expanded our support during the ceasefire
A ceasefire between Israel and Hamas came into effect on Sunday, 19 January 2025, before it was shattered on 18 March 2025.
Despite the ceasefire, Gaza remained in a critical state of emergency, with urgent humanitarian aid still desperately needed. Islamic Relief remained steadfast in its commitment, continuing to provide daily distributions of hot meals, clean water, medical supplies, psychosocial programmes and support for orphaned children in Gaza.
We were among the first organisations to begin clearing debris from main streets, enabling access to neighbourhoods — an essential step toward rebuilding homes, schools, medical centres, and shattered lives.
Together with our partners in Gaza, we have been providing emergency relief to families in desperate need throughout the crisis. We expanded our ongoing emergency response to address immediate needs that emerged during the ceasefire, namely the anticipated large-scale return of internally displaced people from southern Gaza to the north.
We scaled up distribution of hot meals and provided drinking water to displaced people. The expansion of these efforts saw us reach communities in areas of northern Gaza that we were previously unable to access, including Beit Hanoun, Beit Lahya and Jabaliya. We were also able to expand our education and psychosocial support initiatives into new areas to reach more children in need.
Once a permanent ceasefire is in place and the situation on the ground stabilises, Islamic Relief will be ready to help rebuild some of Gaza’s destroyed infrastructure such as homes and schools.
We continue to pray and advocate for lasting peace, with justice and accountability for the horrors perpetrated against civilians. We want to see lasting peace where all people can live in safety and dignity, and have their fundamental human rights upheld. We believe this will not be possible until the root causes of the crisis are addressed and there is an end to Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine.