Ramadan: Providing relief in Syria

This Ramadan may represent a new dawn for Syria, a country that has recently undergone seismic changes, but its people continue to suffer amid one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.

Many people remain displaced and nearly 15 million people are in need of humanitarian support to survive.

Um Mohammed, 46, has been dependent on humanitarian assistance ever her husband passed away. She now lives in Tel Iskander camp, Idlib north-west Syria, with her 4 children.

“We are in a miserable state of poverty as we cannot afford medicine or even buy basic foodstuffs. We do not have a regular income that we can rely on.”

A different Ramadan

Life in Tel Iskander camp is tough. The camp regularly suffers with food shortages and a lack of job opportunities for its residents.

Um Mohammed’s 2 daughters have fortunately been able to secure work in a factory, so the family can afford to buy bread, but it is not enough to feed the family of 5.

Ramadan in the camp is different, Um Mohammed frequently misses how things used to be.

“I used to prepare a variety of foods for the iftar meal, and when my husband came home, he would bring along different drinks and sweets. We would all gather around one table with the family, and the atmosphere was filled with joy and happiness.

“But now, after my husband’s death, I live with my children in a tent.

“We used to gather daily with family and relatives, and I would prepare Eid sweets. Now, it’s just me and my children alone in the camp, and Ramadan lacks its usual spirit without visits and communal meals.”

A big help

In 2024, Islamic Relief delivered nearly 6,000 food packs in Syria, helping to make sure more than 33,500 families had enough food to eat during the holy month.

Um Mohammed and her family were grateful to receive a food package.

“It was a moment of great joy when we received the food assistance. The contents of the food basket are sufficient for the entire month of Ramadan, as it includes pulses, oils, ghee, sugar, and flour.”

Every year, Islamic Relief’s Ramadan food distribution supports vulnerable people like Um and her family around the world, helping them to feed their families during the holy month.

Donate today and help us to reach more people like Um Mohammed this Ramadan. Trust Allah. Give zakat.

Israel’s immoral and illegal decision to block all aid into Gaza will be fatal

Israel’s decision to once again prevent all humanitarian aid from entering Gaza is a cruel and illegal act that will push Gaza back towards famine during the holy month of Ramadan, with fatal consequences for young children. Denying people aid and using starvation as a weapon of war is a clear violation of international law.

Humanitarian aid must never be used as a political tool or to impose collective punishment on an entire civilian population. International governments must urgently demand that aid is allowed in and must reinvigorate political pressure to agree a permanent ceasefire.

In the past 24 hours Israeli shelling has killed and injured several Palestinians and civilians are increasingly fearful. The ceasefire must hold – a return to the relentless horror and atrocities that we saw for more than 15 months would be a global failure of staggering proportion.

At the start of Ramadan, most Palestinian families in Gaza are struggling to find enough to eat and remain stuck in dire conditions, in overcrowded tents with little clean water, sanitation or other basic services.

The first phase of the ceasefire saw a significant increase in aid allowed to enter Gaza, with Islamic Relief and other aid agencies able to scale up lifesaving aid – but it remains a drop in the ocean compared to the catastrophic needs, with almost all of Gaza destroyed by Israeli attacks and families ravaged by starvation and disease. During the ceasefire, more Palestinian babies have died from hypothermia and malnutrition, while Israel has continued to restrict essential materials such as medical supplies, education items, heavy machinery for rubble removal and reconstruction, and shelters for homeless families. Only about 10% of the promised 200,000 tents were allowed into Gaza.

Despite the ceasefire, Israel’s nearly 18-year-old blockade of Gaza remains in place and this latest decision clearly shows how Israel can turn supplies on or off at any moment. The blockade controls the movement of people and goods in and out of Gaza.

The decision is yet another violation of the January 2024 ruling by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which ordered Israel to take immediate measures to prevent genocide in Gaza, including allowing sufficient humanitarian aid to enter. Since then, only a tiny amount of aid has been allowed in and the humanitarian crisis has massively deteriorated. International governments must use all diplomatic, political and economic measures at their disposal to pressure Israel to fully implement the ICJ ruling.

Ramadan: Caring for displaced families in Gaza

Ramadan is the most significant and holy time of the Islamic calendar. A sacred month that marks a period of fasting, reflection and devotion to Allah. For Palestinians in Gaza in 2024, it was the most difficult Ramadan they had ever faced.

At this point in 2024, Gaza had suffered under more than 150 days of relentless Israeli attacks and siege, starvation and displacement.

Najoud and her 5 children were displaced from Jabalia camp in December 2023 after Israeli bombs struck their shelter, killing her husband.

Displaced far from home

Najoud fled to Deir al-Balah, where she and her children took refuge in Al-Manfaluti school. The family have suffered through health challenges ever since, worsening their situation. Najoud suffers with anaemia and a slipped disc, while also has undergone a hysterectomy in the past. One of her daughters, Aya, has ear infections which require surgical intervention.

The family’s financial situation was extremely precarious due to a lack of income and the collapse of the economy in Gaza. They lived in a tent shared with 3 other displaced families.

“Initially, we couldn’t provide the basic necessities of life because we had no money or anything. We had no clothes or kitchen supplies and suffered from a lack of food and water,” Najoud describes.

“Our only source of food was sometimes dry bread and a few canned goods, which were difficult to obtain due to high prices. Initially, we suffered from illnesses like constipation, difficulty digesting food, and diarrhoea due to the lack of vegetables and fruits.

“My children went to sleep hungry, and we had no clothes. Winter came, and it was cold.”

A change in approach

Islamic Relief has been helping Palestinian families in Gaza for nearly 30 years, and continued saving lives throughout this latest, terrible crisis. We adapted our usual Ramadan food distribution support programme: switching from our usual approach, providing family food parcels, to delivering more than 121,000 hot meals to approximately 75,000 people. We also worked with the World Food Programme to deliver an additional 300,000 hot meals every day through our emergency response.

Najoud was thankful for the support.

“They [Islamic Relief] provided us with a meal every day and helped us face the difficulties we encountered during the displacement. We received clothes and vegetable parcels from them, which diversified our diet and improved my children’s health, treating them from malnutrition.

“May God reward them for all they have provided for us, supporting us in every way with food, nutrition, vegetables, and psychological support. We hope that those in charge of this work will continue to provide us with these necessities.”

Since a ceasefire came into effect in January, families like Najoud’s are returning to their homes, but most are finding their houses and apartments – like the majority of buildings in Gaza – lie in ruins. The situation in the enclave remains catastrophic. Families on the brink of survival now face Ramadan grieving the loved ones they have lost and unsure where their next meal is coming from.

Islamic Relief food distributions this Ramadan will ease their hunger.

With your support and in the name of Allah, we will make sure the most vulnerable have food during the holy month. Together, we will ease their suffering. Donate to our Ramadan Appeal now.

A message from Islamic Relief CEO this Ramadan

As Ramadan begins, Islamic Relief Worldwide’s CEO, Waseem Ahmad, shares a message of thanks to our supporters.

As we prepare to enter the holy month of Ramadan, our thoughts are with our brothers and sisters around the world who are suffering, unable to spend quality time with their loved ones or even to find food with which to break their fasts.

I’m writing from Egypt, where I’ve spent this week packing up some of the 28,000 lifesaving Ramadan food parcels that Islamic Relief and our local partner Misr El Kheir will be delivering to Gaza.

Waseem has been helping pack Ramadan food parcels ready to be trucked into Gaza from Egypt

The crisis just across the border in Gaza is almost too catastrophic to properly describe. Hundreds of thousands of surviving families have no homes or schools to return to. For those that are sick or injured, there is no hospital to treat them. Entire neighbourhoods are now rubble, and everyone is grieving a loved one killed.

The levels of hunger there are shocking, and it is no exaggeration to say that these parcels of nutritious staples such as rice, pasta, beans and cheese, will be a lifeline for suffering families.

Since the outbreak of the crisis in Gaza, Islamic Relief’s team and partners on the ground have been delivering aid to hundreds of thousands of people in need. We’ve cooked around 70 million hot meals, sustained a daily water supply for many, provided education for children, and much more.

But the hunger crisis in Gaza remains desperate, and our team there needs more support. Since the ceasefire, we have started to see a lot more aid coming into Gaza, but it is still nowhere near enough compared to the massive needs.

Alhamdulilah, our food parcels will provide families with sustenance for the body and spirit. It is thanks to our incredible donors that we can make this happen and we ask that you continue to give generously during the holy month.

Supporting families in need worldwide

As well as Gaza, Egypt shares a border with Sudan, where our parcels are helping to ease the burden of people experiencing one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.

Millions have been displaced, and famine has been confirmed in multiple areas of the country.

When I visited Sudan late last year, I was struck by the resilience of its people in the face of so much suffering. Many that I met had been forced to flee their homes with little more than the clothes on their backs only to have to relocate again and again in search of safety.

Hunger, displacement and uncertainty are also being keenly felt by our brothers and sisters in Syria. So much there has changed in recent months, but the humanitarian crisis that has gripped the country for almost 14 years remains a bitter reality for many.

Our Ramadan food parcels will reach vulnerable people in Gaza, Sudan, Syria and many more places around the world. They provide not only much needed sustenance and food with which to break fasts, but also, a peaceful moment for families to spend together, their burden eased by the generosity of our donors.

This Ramadan, when you join together with your families and loved ones, remember the many people around the world who need your help. Your kind donations and duas are appreciated more than words can express.

Last year, they helped us deliver more than 172,000 food parcels to families across 29 countries. This year, we hope to reach many more, insha’Allah. Please help us reach this goal. Donate to our Ramadan appeal now.

Jazakallah khairan

Ramadan kareem

Wasalaamu alaykum wa Rahmatullahi wa barakatuh

After 500 days, Palestinians in Gaza suffer new daily horrors

Palestinians in Gaza are suffering daily new horrors despite the ceasefire, Islamic Relief says as the world marks 500 days of the escalation.

Hundreds of thousands of families remain homeless, forced to live in tents or temporary shelters, as more than 92% of homes have been damaged or destroyed by Israeli attacks and reconstruction has not yet begun. Families are still digging the bodies of loved from beneath 50 million tonnes of rubble that used to be homes, schools and health clinics, and neighbourhoods are now strewn with unexploded ordnance that have blown up and killed young children as they play or walk home.

The scale of destruction is unprecedented. Entire neighbourhoods and public services have been obliterated, and livelihoods shattered, and almost everyone left grieving. Israel’s attacks have systematically targeted every aspect of Gaza’s infrastructure and social fabric in a deliberate campaign to render Gaza unliveable.

Since the ceasefire there has been a big increase in aid allowed into Gaza, but it remains a drop in the ocean compared to the overwhelming needs. Although more food is now entering, there is still a desperate shortage of tents, medicine, fuel and heavy machinery for clearing rubble and repairing the damaged roads. Gaza remains under Israel’s illegal blockade that has been in place for almost 18 years, through which Israel controls the movement of all goods and people in and out of the territory and which has turned Gaza into the world’s largest open-air prison camp.

Islamic Relief has been able to scale up its work in Gaza since the ceasefire, reaching thousands more families all over the Strip. Since October 2023 Islamic Relief and partners have delivered aid including over 67 million hot cooked meals as well as supplying water, psychosocial support and physical rehabilitation for wounded children.

Yet, the ceasefire remains dangerously fragile and is being further undermined by rising Israeli attacks in the West Bank and growing threats to force Palestinians out of Gaza, which would amount to ethnic cleansing and must be opposed. International governments must not allow the ceasefire to collapse and must do all they can to ensure it becomes permanent.

The surge in Israeli attacks in the West Bank have caused the highest levels of displacement there in decades, with 40,000 Palestinians forced from their homes over the last few weeks amid deadly and indiscriminate bombardment, ground offensives and tightening restrictions on civilian movement.

International governments must ensure there is accountability for the horrors and crimes of the past 500 days. As Israel continues to violate international law through its ongoing occupation and attacks on civilians, we continue to call on governments to end the impunity and take concrete action including ending arms sales that continue to fuel further violations of international law.

Islamic Relief believes the ceasefire in Gaza must lead to a lasting peace, where all people can live in safety and dignity, with their fundamental human rights upheld. We believe this will only be possible when there is an end to Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine. International governments must immediately outline how they will abide by the International Court of Justice’s July 2024 ruling that Israel’s illegal occupation must be ended as soon as possible

Two years on from Turkiye-Syria earthquakes, survivors are still in camps and need support

Two years on from the deadly Turkiye-Syria earthquakes, thousands of survivors are still languishing in harsh conditions in camps in northwest Syria, where they struggle to get enough food, water, healthcare or earn an income.

The 7.8 magnitude earthquakes, which struck on 6 February 2023, were the worst to hit the region in over a century, killing around 57,000 people and destroying or damaging more than 137,000 homes as well as vital services such as schools and health centres. The cost of recovery and reconstruction is estimated at up to $80 billion.

In the two years since, Islamic Relief has been helping to rebuild homes, services and livelihoods, but the charity says the pace of recovery is too slow.

Rajab Haj Salem, head of Islamic Relief’s office in Idlib in northwest Syria, said:

“It’s so sad to see the situation for earthquake survivors in the camps here.

Two years later, many of them are still traumatised by the earthquakes. They still relive the moment that ripped apart their entire lives. Many are doubly hurt by being stuck in camps and having to depend on aid. People just want support to rebuild their homes so they can leave the camps and live in dignity.

Conditions in the camps are very harsh, with shortages of almost everything, from food and water to healthcare and education. Many people don’t have dignified shelters and they can’t access jobs or a decent livelihood. In the winter months now it gets very cold and people’s tents get flooded or blown down by high winds.

Islamic Relief is providing aid in the camps and helping to rebuild homes and livelihoods, but it’s not enough. More international support is needed to help them recover. People in the camps message our staff, asking the world not to forget about them.”

Islamic Relief is working in the camps, delivering bread to over 10,000 families every day. It has built 643 homes for families, moving displaced residents out of their tents. We provide services including health centres, malnutrition clinics, education for children. We have given more than 40,000 families livelihood support including agriculture training, tools for farming, and investment to livestock. This is a priority in Syria where unemployment is a significant challenge and over 90% of people are living in poverty.

The earthquake survivors are among more than one million people living in camps in northwest Syria, with many other families made homeless by the horrific violence that people have endured over the past 14 years.

The end of the Assad government in December 2024 has brought many people hope of rebuilding a better future for Syria, but the country needs international support to recover from more than a decade of destruction and loss.

Turkiye also suffered devastating destruction from the earthquake, but there has been a much faster recovery.

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