Doha June 13 (QNA) - With the support of donors in Qatar, Qatar Charity (QC) was able to distribute 198,000 ready-to-eat meals in the Gaza Strip, as part of efforts to ease the suffering of patients and displaced families amid ongoing humanitarian challenges.

The meals-consisting of pastries, baked goods, and juices-were distributed between 20 March and 7 June, providing immediate food assistance to vulnerable groups.

The initiative targeted patients, medical and administrative staff in several hospitals and health centers in northern Gaza. In addition, 40,000 meals were delivered to internally displaced persons (IDPs) living in camps.

This intervention aims to support food security and improve care conditions in health facilities, while also easing daily living burdens and helping sustain essential health services.

Despite the cessation of the war in October 2025, humanitarian conditions in Gaza remain critical. According to reports, around 1.6 million people-approximately 77 percent of the population-continue to face high levels of acute food insecurity, placing vulnerable groups such as children and pregnant or breastfeeding women at heightened health risk.

Nearly one in five children under the age of five in Gaza suffers from acute malnutrition, according to reports by Nutrition Cluster partners of the World Health Organization (WHO). UN data also shows that more than 40 percent of pregnant and breastfeeding women are affected by acute malnutrition, highlighting the scale of the nutritional crisis.

This project comes as part of Qatar Charity’s ongoing support for affected communities in the Gaza Strip. Over the two years of war and blockade (2023–2025), the organization-supported by generous donors in Qatar-implemented integrated interventions across key sectors, including food, health, education, water, and shelter.

These efforts have benefited more than 5 million people at a total cost of approximately QAR 243 million. (QNA)