Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are returning to rubble, devastation and the skeletal remains of loved ones where their homes and communities once stood in the Gaza Strip. An estimated 60% of all buildings are damaged or destroyed, including 92% of all homes, as a result of Israel’s 15-month-long bombing campaign.  

The Lancet, one of the highest-impact academic journals in the world, estimates that Israel has killed more than 186,000 Palestinians since October 2023. Carpet bombings, deliberate starvation, destruction of health facilities and snipering of children have compelled Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and the ICJ to accuse Israel of committing genocide. 

And thousands of Palestinians who survived this genocide face torture and sexual abuse in Israeli prisons where systemic assaults by soldiers are well-doucmented, just as they were decades earlier.

In an effort to stop humanitarian aid in Gaza and the West Bank, Israel banned UNRWA on January 30, 2025. UNRWA was created in 1949 to provide life-saving aid for Palestinians who were forcibly removed from their homeland by the creation of Israel. Israeli officials have also falsely accused UNRWA of employing terrorists. They have never provided proof of these claims, and an international investigation in April 2024 found no evidence of terrorism with UNRWA workers. Still, Israeli soldiers have killed at least 375 total aid workers, including 272 from UNRWA alone.

Since the ceasefire began, UNRWA has brought in 60% of the food entering Gaza. And despite Israel’s ban, UNRWA will continue its humanitarian operations in the area as much as possible. Please consider giving to this UN agency, especially in light of Donald Trump’s desire to ethnically cleanse the Gaza Strip.