Urgent Appeal: Gaza Crisis Worsens During Ramadan

TFD – The Gaza crisis intensifies as Ramadan unfolds, with humanitarian organizations like Islamic Relief stepping up efforts to provide essential aid. Join the global community in supporting relief efforts for Palestinians facing desperate conditions.

For Nadia Duwaik, a 33-year-old American Palestinian, Ramadan feels heavier than it has in the past.

According to Duwaik, who spoke with CNN, she usually looks forward to Ramadan because it gives her family the opportunity to observe customs like getting together for iftar each night and celebrate.

However, Duwaik, a Palestinian immigrant’s daughter, claimed that this year’s ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict and the worsening humanitarian situation in Gaza have muddled her views about the holy month.

According to the Ministry of Health in the enclave, Israel’s siege of Gaza has resulted in over 30,000 deaths and around 70,000 injuries since the Hamas offensive on October 7.

Humanitarian organizations are raising the alarm about the deteriorating situation as the UN reports that hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are in danger of starvation and as desperation increases due to Israel’s harsh restrictions on aid entering Gaza.

The European Union and its allies, including the US, declared on Friday that they would be opening a naval emergency assistance route from Cyprus to Gaza. President Joe Biden declared the day before that the US military would attempt to establish a temporary port along the Gaza coast in an effort to provide desperately needed humanitarian aid.

The global appeal for aid comes after Israeli soldiers opened fire on crowds gathered around food aid trucks earlier this month, killing over 100 people, according to Palestinian officials and eyewitnesses. After the chaos broke out, many people were run over by the trucks, hurt, or trampled.

As previously reported by CNN, Israel denied the testimony of Palestinian leaders and eyewitnesses while confirming that its forces had opened fire on demonstrators after they threatened them.

The World Food Programme reports that there is “crisis or worse levels of acute food insecurity” for the entire 2.2 million residents of Gaza, and that child malnutrition is “higher than anywhere in the world” in the region.

American Muslims, including Duwaik, told CNN that once the crescent moon appears on Monday, the first night of Ramadan, they feel compelled to fulfill a fundamental tenet of their faith: zakat, or charitable donation, in order to support Gaza relief efforts.

Jad Shaheen, a Palestinian American as well, said he never forgets his family in the West Bank or the deteriorating humanitarian situation.

“The situation is obviously worse—people are actively starving—so they need more help than they’ve needed in the past,” he stated. “People in Gaza are not allowed to access food or water, so it is especially crucial to try and get those necessities to those in need.”

According to Duwaik, she has made donations to the UN Agency for Palestine Refugees and the Palestinian Children’s Relief Fund ever since the war started. Due to the fact that this year marks her birthday during Ramadan, Duwaik announced she will be asking friends to make donations to a charity that aids in relief efforts rather than purchasing presents.

A representative for the nonprofit Islamic Relief stated that during Ramadan in 2023, the organization received more than $30 million in internet donations.

The nonprofit’s associate director for international projects and partnerships, Awrad Saleh, reported that more people than ever before “want to give during Ramadan.”

She stated that this year, Islamic Relief wants food contributions and relief to be accessible in all of the nations where they offer aid from the first day of Ramadan until the very end.

Saleh declared, “We’re supporting them through hot meals for Ramadan and Gaza.”

She said they hope to reach 250,000 people and are working with partners in the region to distribute the meals to areas that include Khan Yunis and Rafah.

They are serving veggies for suhoor, the meal individuals normally have before breaking their fast at dawn, in addition to the hot meals.

Since this is just for Ramadan, it’s just to make sure that those who are fasting also have access to food that they need every day, she explained. “It’s literally for anybody in the area who needs a hot meal,” she said.

According to its website, the group is guided by the following verse from the Quran: “Establish prayer and give zakat, and whatever good you put forward for yourselves — you will find it with Allah.” Yes, Allah is aware of everything you do.

Although Nasma Shehadeh, a Christian from Bethlehem who currently resides in New York, does not practice Islam, she has given money to charitable organizations like Islamic Relief in order to assist Muslims in need. Shehadeh expressed her concern for her friends who are enduring Ramadan with few resources in the area.

Shehadeh stated, “They’re going to be fasting because there’s no food and they have such strong faith.” “I find it absurd that they would fast and go without food.”

Shehadeh stated that her main goal is to assist her friend in Gaza, who is currently relying on contributions to pay for her and her family’s escape to Egypt after her home was damaged and is currently living in a shelter.

According to Samina Taj, associate director of communications for Human Appeal, the nonprofit has been delivering aid to Gaza since 1991.

Taj stated that their teams have come together since the beginning of the conflict in Gaza to attempt and address the urgent demand for assistance.

In order to feed families who are fasting during Ramadan, Taj stated that the charity is trying to set up a mobile kitchen in Gaza “so that people are nourished during this spiritual time.”

According to a report published in February 2024, Human Appeal has been able to transfer around $1.9 worth of medical supplies, medication, and winter clothing into Gaza through the Rafah border crossing thanks to donations received to the charity since October 7.

According to Taj, the charity has since witnessed an increase in donations and anticipates much more during Ramadan.

While Ramadan is a time for giving, Noor Traina, a 24-year-old Libyan-born consultant in Washington, DC, said she is aware that donations alone will not be sufficient to end the war.

Traina regularly makes charitable contributions to mosques throughout Ramadan in accordance with the Islamic idea of sadaqa, which is a little different from the more required zakat.

It’s simply a spiritual month, so I just plan on giving more, too, she said. “I just end up giving more,” she said.

Traina, though, is concerned about whether her assistance is truly reaching its target.

“We make an effort to locate the most trustworthy sources, but is there much chance it will truly reach people?” she questioned.

Before Ramadan, negotiators had planned to come to an agreement on a ceasefire, but last week’s negotiations broke down. Traina declared that she will keep pushing legislators to act, along with other Muslims.

“We will be worshipping this Ramadan by protesting and demanding a ceasefire and humanitarian aid for Palestinians, in addition to fasting and giving, while remembering the starving and injured families and orphans of Gaza and Palestine,” the speaker declared.

“That is the essence of Ramadan, particularly this year.”

Correction: Nadia Duwaik’s age was misreported in an earlier version of this story. She is thirty-three.