World Central Kitchen plans to resume relief efforts in the Gaza Strip on Monday after suspending relief efforts there on April 1 after seven staff members were killed in an Israeli airstrike. It was announced that.
The killings have cut off the flow of vital food to the war-torn area, where many displaced people are on the brink of starvation. Before the airstrikes, World Central Kitchen had distributed more than 43 million tickets in the Gaza Strip, according to the charity.
However, following the airstrike, many groups called for the withdrawal of aid workers from the area and an investigation into the deaths of civilians they were assisting.
The Israel Defense Forces took responsibility for the attack and said it was investigating how it happened.
President Joe Biden criticized Israel after the tragedy, saying it showed it was not doing enough to protect civilians.
Four weeks later, one of the world's most famous disaster relief organizations is preparing to head into the danger zone once again.
israel at war
April 3, 2024, 12:00 p.m.
World Central Kitchen saves lives with food, but pays the price in blood.
“The humanitarian situation in Gaza remains dire,” said Erin Gore, CEO of World Central Kitchen. “We are returning to business with the same energy and dignity and are focused on feeding as many people as possible.”
The charity said it was preparing nearly 300 trucks carrying millions of meals to enter through the Rafah crossing. Others enter the country from Jordan.
World Central Kitchen plans to open its third high-production kitchen in the region. It will be named “Damien's Kitchen” in memory of Damien Sobol, a master kitchen builder who was killed in the April 1st attack.
“We had to make a decision: completely cut off food supplies and end our operations, which accounted for 62% of all international NGO aid, in the midst of the worst hunger crisis in history.'' If not, we must continue to feed, knowing that aid workers, aid workers, and civilians are being threatened and killed,” Gore said in a statement. “These are the most difficult conversations we have had, and we considered all points of view in our deliberations. Ultimately, we continue to provide food and our mission to feed people during the most difficult of times.” I decided that I had to continue.”
