As we welcome the month of holy Ramadan, may it bring you and your families peace, health, and joy.  

This is the second time Ramadan takes place during the global pandemic of coronavirus disease (COVID-19); and UPA is mindful of the heavy toll COVID-19 continues to have around the world and throughout the Middle East. For Palestinian communities already experiencing inequities, poverty, and food insecurity, this relentless pandemic is pushing people and services to the brink and has exacerbated their fragility.

The United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) recently estimated that the already alarming rate of food insecurity among Palestinians may have reached as high as 50% in the West Bank and Gaza Strip since the outbreak of COVID-19. This is largely due to the ongoing lockdowns and resulting unemployment. Unfortunately, rates may be even higher among Palestinian refugee communities in Lebanon and Jordan, where resources are minimal and the struggle to purchase food has been part of their daily lives for generations.

This Ramadan We Stand United in Our Compassion

That is why, as we collectively step outside our usual routines this Ramadan to contemplate what is truly important in life and to reflect on the deprivation of others, UPA invites you to unite and take compassionate action.

With UPA’s field staff and partners on the ground, we will provide nutritious food – fresh meals and food parcels- as well as necessary hygiene supplies, delivered safely and with dignity to Palestinian families in the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and refugee camps in Lebanon and Jordan. In doing so, we will reach out across geographies to serve affected Palestinians wherever they are.

Our goal is to bring greater food security to 10,000 Palestinian families, extend a hand of solidarity and affirm our common humanity at its most fundamental level.

“Ramadan is an opportunity for all of us to renew and rededicate ourselves to support the most vulnerable amongst us. COVID-19 has severely impacted livelihoods and socio-economic development in Palestinian communities. Economic and domestic stressors collide to negatively affect the wellbeing of Palestinians at both the individual and household levels. Often it is women and girls, the children and the elderly, persons with disabilities and underlying health conditions who are most severely affected,” said UPA Executive Director Saleem F. Zaru. “Therefore, we are making sure these communities are supported and nourished during precarious times we face today,” he added.

Please give today as generously as you are able. Your tax-deductible gift, Sadaqa, Zakat, Fidya, or Fitra or will make all the difference in the lives of those who need it the most.