The food relief organization World Central Kitchen (WCK) announced on Wednesday that it will suspend its operations in the Gaza Strip due to a depletion of humanitarian supplies.
“After serving more than 130 million meals and 26 million loaves of bread over the past 18 months, World Central Kitchen no longer has the supplies to cook meals or bake bread in Gaza,” the charity said in a press statement.
Since border crossings were closed in early March, WCK has been unable to replenish its food stocks used to feed hundreds of thousands of Gazans daily. The organization’s large-scale field kitchens have run out of ingredients needed to prepare meals, and its mobile bakery has no flour left. More than 80 percent of community kitchens in Gaza have exhausted WCK-provided supplies.
Amid the crisis, Amjad Shawa, director of the Palestinian Non-Governmental Organizations Network in Gaza, warned that the closure of community kitchens could worsen hunger in the region. “The repercussions of the severe humanitarian disaster will be significant on the health and lives of citizens, especially children, women, the elderly, and the sick,” Shawa said.
“If all parties do not intervene to save the situation by opening the crossings and allowing the entry of humanitarian and medical aid, we will be facing an extremely dangerous situation in Gaza,” he added.
Israel halted the entry of goods and supplies into Gaza on March 2, following the expiration of the first phase of a ceasefire agreement with Hamas. The United Nations has warned of an impending humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, reporting increasing signs of acute hunger, particularly among children.
