World Central Kitchen has paused most operations in Gaza following the April 1, 2024 Israeli Defense Forces attack that killed seven team members. We are distributing perishable items stocked in our Gaza warehouse to our network of community kitchens in addition to wood pellets essential for cooking. We continue to assess the future of our response.
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Since early October, families in Gaza, Israel, and Lebanon have been reeling from devastating conflict that has caused profound loss of life and forced millions of people to flee their homes. Innocent families are caught in the middle of the volatile situation. Our teams are committed to providing aid to anyone who needs it and are continuously adapting our response to reach more people.
In Gaza, there is a critical humanitarian crisis facing families across the territory. Relentless shelling and a ground offensive have killed tens of thousands of civilians and forced more than a million Palestinians from their homes. The conflict has exacerbated an already dire humanitarian crisis caused by a years-long blockade. People are struggling to access water, food, and the means to cook for their families. Despite restrictions on humanitarian aid entering the territory, our teams have provided meals by land, sea, and air. We established field kitchens in Rafah and Deir al-Balah, where we also opened a center to support families fleeing from the north. WCK created a network of Palestinian-led community kitchens across Gaza.
In Lebanon, the need for aid has been overshadowed. There have been rising tensions and hostilities along the Israel-Lebanon border that have displaced an estimated 100,000 people. WCK and our partners in the country are serving thousands of hot meals every day, with a focus on comforting and hearty Lebanese flavors. Meanwhile, natural disasters don’t stop during conflicts: Recent severe flooding in the north of the country destroyed homes and roads. WCK, working alongside our local partners, acted quickly to support communities impacted by the flooding.
In Israel, WCK teams partnered with local restaurants across the country, serving meals to people who were displaced from their homes as a result of the October attack and ensuing shelling along the border. As Israeli hostages returned home, we delivered fresh, nourishing meals to the hospitals where they received checkups and were reunited with their families. While our response has wound down in Israel since acute food needs have abated, we have a large network of restaurants and local partners who are ready to support families should there be a need again.
WCK is first to the frontlines, providing meals in response to humanitarian, climate, and community crises. When disaster strikes, WCK’s Relief Team mobilizes to the frontlines with the urgency of now to start cooking and provide meals to people in need. By partnering with organizations on the ground and activating a network of local restaurants, food trucks, or emergency kitchens, WCK serves comforting meals to survivors of disasters quickly and effectively. We know that good food provides not only nourishment, but also comfort and hope, especially in times of crisis.
WCK has provided more than 300 million fresh, nourishing meals for communities around the world. Your donation today will be used to support our emergency food relief efforts.
