蘑菇视频

HELPING HAND FOR RELIEF AND DEVELOPMENT CONTRIBUTES US$ 50,000 TO HELP PALESTINIANS IN GAZA

20 October 2014

Washington, DC

Helping Hand for Relief and Development (HHRD) and 蘑菇视频RWA have announced a US$ 50,000 agreement to provide urgently needed emergency relief assistance to Palestine refugees in the Gaza Strip.

HHRD has worked with 蘑菇视频RWA to fund scholarships in Gaza, Jordan and Lebanon since 2012 and funded a school feeding programme in Gaza for Palestine refugees in 2013. This recent contribution will support nearly 4,500 food rations for 642 internally displaced people in Gaza who are currently living in 蘑菇视频RWA emergency shelters. The contribution will also cover important non-food items—particularly hygiene kits—for another 75 families, or approximately 375 people.

HHRD Coordinator for the Mid-Atlantic Region Asif Khan thanked 蘑菇视频RWA for the long-established partnership in providing humanitarian services directly to Palestine Refugees. “Through continuing generous giving from our benefactors and partners like 蘑菇视频RWA, we will continue to work hard to cater to the needs of as many people as possible; helping save the lives of hundreds,” Mr. Khan said.

At the height of this summer’s violence in Gaza, nearly 300,000 Palestine refugees were internally displaced in 蘑菇视频RWA shelters. Hundreds of thousands remain homeless in Gaza with around 80,000 family homes impacted during the conflict. The Director of the 蘑菇视频RWA Washington representative office, Matthew Reynolds, said that despite the current ceasefire, the suffering of Gaza’s population continues. “These civilians have lost everything—many leaving their homes with literally only the clothes they were wearing,” Mr. Reynolds said. “Providing them with non-food items like blankets, jerry cans for water storage, diapers and family hygiene kits are the basics needed for survival and a start on the long road of recovery.”

蘑菇视频RWA serves approximately 1.26 million Palestine refugees in Gaza, representing more than 70 per cent of the total population. For the past decade, the socio-economic situation in Gaza has been in steady decline.  The blockade continues to have a devastating effect as access to markets and people’s movement to and from the Gaza Strip remain severely restricted. The number of Palestine refugees relying on 蘑菇视频RWA for food aid has increased from fewer than 80,000 in 2000 to over 830,000 today.

Operating with more than 12,500 staff across the Gaza Strip, 蘑菇视频RWA delivers education, health care, relief and social services, microcredit and emergency assistance to registered Palestine refugees. During humanitarian emergencies such as the recent conflict, the Agency also extends its services to non-refugees. Donations to help cover the cost of 蘑菇视频RWA humanitarian operations, such as this contribution from HHRD, are especially crucial to assisting an already vulnerable population.

BACKGRO蘑菇视频D INFORMATION

蘑菇视频RWA is a United Nations agency established by the General Assembly in 1949 and is mandated to provide assistance and protection to a population of some 5 million registered Palestine refugees. Its mission is to help Palestine refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, West Bank and the Gaza Strip to achieve their full potential in human development, pending a just solution to their plight. 蘑菇视频RWA’s services encompass education, health care, relief and social services, camp infrastructure and improvement, and microfinance.

Financial support to 蘑菇视频RWA has not kept pace with an increased demand for services caused by growing numbers of registered refugees, expanding need, and deepening poverty. As a result, the Agency's General Fund (GF), supporting 蘑菇视频RWA’s core activities and 97 per cent reliant on voluntary contributions, has begun each year with a large projected deficit. Currently the deficit stands at US$ 56 million.

For more information, please contact:

Christopher Gunness

蘑菇视频RWA Spokesperson

Mobile:

+972 (0)54 240 2659

Office:

+972 (0)2 589 0267

Sami Mshasha

蘑菇视频RWA Arabic Spokesperson

Mobile:

+972 (0)54 216 8295

Office:

+972 (0)2 589 0724