100 Days of Relentless Pain and Suffering
The situation so far:
Today marks 100 days of bombardments, death, destruction, pain, and suffering. Over the last 100 day24,000 people have been killed, over 10,000 of those are children - Inna Lillahi Wa Inna Illahi Rajioon. Over 60,000 have been injured, nearly 9,000 of those children, many of whom have had their limbs amputated and suffered excruciating burns. These victims are now at risk of death due to a lack of medical supplies. We have watched dozens of hospitals, where thousands of patients were being treated and others seeking safety, bombed, and no longer functioning. Schools, mosques, and even official United Nations buildings have been wrecked. 359,000 housing units have been destroyed, the equivalent of 6 in 10 houses. We have also seen Gaza's population of 2.3 million people displaced and now trapped in less than 400sq kilometres of the besieged enclave. The people of Palestine are now at risk of death from bombing, starvation, and diseases! Subhan’Allah.
Penny Appeal’s response:
Thanks to our existing humanitarian presence in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, we were able to respond to the suffering of our brothers and sisters across Gaza with immediate effect. Our partners worked tirelessly to distribute all the supplies we had available in our warehouses across the Palestinian territories. We distributed food packs, medical supplies, water, hygiene kits, tents, and other essential supplies to those who were subjected to the impacts of bombardments and displacement.
As innocent civilians fled their homes in desperate search of refuge, we coordinated aid distributions to numerous UNRWA schools as the horrors of the aggression unfolded before us. We witnessed the bombing of schools, hospitals, mosques, and churches, all of which were being used as a means of safety and protection. It soon became clear that no area was off limits for relentless violence.
With restrictions on aid via air, land, and sea, attacks were no longer the only threat to life for Palestinians in Gaza. Our Head of Mission joined colleagues in our supplies warehouse in Cairo, Egypt where we managed to secure an MOU with the Egyptian Red Crescent to get our aid over the Rafah Border. We were in fact one of very few charities who were granted this access. Our very own CEO, Ridwana Wallace-Laher, joined the efforts on the ground in Cairo, where she personally packed thousands of boxes with supplies. Ridwana and the team also visited Al Masr Burns Hospital who were preparing for the arrival of those with life-threatening burns from bombs, fires, and chemicals.
November and December presented additional challenges brought by an unforgiving winter in Palestine. Torrential rain poured over camps where 2 million displaced Palestinians were now forced to reside. Flooded tents and freezing children filled the once bustling streets of the holy lands.
The Rafah region alone is now home to almost half of the population of Gaza. With no choice but to live in makeshift tents on a piece of land the size of 400 football fields, the Palestinian people are officially out of places to go. A complete absence of sanitation, medicine, food, and clean water is causing diseases to spread through the camps, putting the lives of innocent children and families at risk.
Our impact so far:
We are supporting 315,695 people.
We are supplying 40 trucks of aid delivery.
We are distributing 1,183,600 food packs.
We are serving 282,500 hot meals.
We are providing 60,000 medical supplies.
We are handing over 53,520 hygiene kits.
We are supporting with the mobilisation of 20 doctors and100 medical staff.
This is all thanks to you – Alhamdulillah!
Your support and prayers are needed now more than ever!
Please continue to pray for our brothers and sisters during their time of need. May we forever stand in solidarity with the people on Palestine, and may Allah SWT, forever give us the means to help our brothers and sisters during their time of need.
O Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) Bestower of mercy, bestow Your mercy on the people of Palestine - Ameen!
Ceasefire now - A message from our CEO to the world:
MONDAY 15 JAN 2024
