Tag: Impact

Millions of lives are at risk unless international governments urgently renew commitment to tackle the worsening global hunger crisis, Islamic Relief warns.

Levels of hunger have doubled in the past decade, reversing years of sustained progress on food security that has saved many lives. Time is now rapidly running out to achieve the global goal of ending hunger by 2030. (i)

Hunger is not inevitable – there is enough food in the world for everyone, but inequality, climate change and conflict prevent many people from accessing it. Now global aid cuts are reversing hard-won gains, and the Middle East war is further disrupting supply chains and pushing up prices of staple goods, affecting the poorest people most of all.

• In Sudan three years of war has forced families and farmers off their land and disrupted agricultural production, creating the world’s biggest hunger crisis – at least 19.5 million people are suffering food shortages. (ii)
• In Gaza, 87% of all crop land has been damaged, leaving almost 80% of people reliant on humanitarian aid which Israel continues to impede. One in five Palestinians there are surviving on just one meal a day. (iii)
• In Somalia, prolonged drought has left 1.9 million young children needing treatment for acute malnutrition. With some areas now at risk of famine, funding cuts mean humanitarian aid is reaching just 12% of people in need. (iv)

War is one of the biggest drivers of hunger. A Sudanese farmer, Ahmed Hajj Bakhit, 60, told Islamic Relief that armed groups looted and destroyed his land and machinery:

“I’ve been farming in this area for over 40 years. Before the war we were doing very well. We had cows, lemon trees, and produced large quantities of clover. All year round I was producing clover without missing a single day. I never struggled financially.

“[Last year] They cut down all the lemon trees, burned the land. Our well, which had motors, was looted. They took the large diesel generator. The pumps, starters, cables and pipes were completely taken.

“Now the seeds have become very expensive. Energy is expensive. And with the extra costs like pesticides and harvesting, I’d need a huge amount of money. But now of course no one has money. Right now, I can’t even afford a single sack of fertiliser. Everyone has been affected by this war and by the destruction of the farms. People are starting over from scratch. Many people have sold their farms because the country is destroyed.

“Sudan, by God, is a good country and a rich country, with fertile lands. It just needs something to help it grow again.”

Many international commitments to tackle global hunger and address the climate crisis have failed to materialise, and disregard for international law is fuelling hunger – with warring parties forcing farmers off their land, blocking aid and attacking humanitarian workers.

Islamic Relief is calling for a new global approach to hunger that upholds international law, helps communities adapt to climate change, and invests more in early preventative action rather than responding once people are already starving and need emergency aid. Food crises are usually predictable and acting early saves both lives and money, yet anticipatory warnings are repeatedly ignored.

Islamic Relief works to address the hunger crisis in around 40 countries worldwide – supporting climate-resilient agriculture and irrigation, improving livelihoods and access to finance, maintaining nutrition clinics and health centres, and providing emergency food aid. This month Islamic Relief is distributing qurbani food parcels to vulnerable families to mark Eid al-Adha.

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(i) The United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 2 (SDG2) committed to action to achieve zero hunger by 2030 and ensuring that all people have access to safe, nutritious and sufficient food all year round. https://globalgoals.org/goals/2-zero-hunger/

(ii) Based on latest assessment from the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification

(iii) Based on latest data from UN OCHA

(iv) Based on latest assessment from the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification

Saltanah, 50, lives in the southwestern city of Taiz, Yemen, with her 6 children. Outside of seasonal distributions such as qurban and Ramadan, the family also receives support from Islamic Relief’s Orphan Sponsorship Program.

“[Eid] is a special time of happiness because it’s the only time in the year when my children and I get to eat meat. They wait for this day all year long,” Saltanah says.

Suffering from an illness that prevents her from working, Saltanah has no option but to rely on aid to meet her family’s needs.

“We have no source of income and no family to support us. We survive on what Islamic Relief provides,” she explains. “Everything is too expensive… access to food, clean water and basic needs is a daily struggle.

“Meat is not part of our regular diet. We only eat it once a year when Islamic Relief provides it during Eid al-Adha… most days, we eat yoghurt because it’s all we can afford.”

Bringing joy, restoring dignity

Saltanah was among the almost 70,000 people in Yemen that received a qurban meat parcel through Islamic Relief’s distribution in 2025.

In 2025, Islamic Relief’s annual qurban distribution reached more than 3.2 million people in 29 countries, easing the burden on vulnerable families, supporting their nutrition and sharing the joy of Eid.

This year, needs in Yemen are even greater as families like Saltanah’s grapple with a severe hunger crisis and dwindling international support.

“It is extremely difficult [to buy meat] – impossible, really. We simply can’t afford it,” Saltanah says. “The lack of proper nutrition, including meat, has weakened my health and makes daily life even harder.”

Amid this hardship, your generosity allows Islamic Relief to provide families like Saltanah’s with a moment of respite during a special time of year.

“[The meat pack] brought us joy and allowed my children to eat something they never get the chance to. It restored some of our dignity and gave us a reason to smile during Eid,” Saltanah says.

“May Allah bless Islamic Relief and our sponsor. They have restored some hope in our lives.”

Fulfil your Qurban this Eid. Give generously to our Qurban Appeal to help us reach even more families like Saltanah’s in Yemen and beyond this year.

Halima lives with her 4 children in a camp for displaced people in Gedaref, Sudan. Like millions of others, the family were forced to flee their home amid the crisis that has engulfed the country for the last 3 years.

“Living as [internally displaced people] is very difficult,” Halima says. “We have no income and just depend on aid. The living conditions in the camp itself are very difficult; tents are hot, there are lots of insects, as well as snakes and scorpions.

“Everything is expensive and we cannot buy from the market. There is no education or school for our children. But the most difficult thing is getting [medical treatment]. There are no health services in the camp, sick people go to Gedaref City, but it is very expensive.”

Halima says she struggles to afford meat. With so many other pressing needs, it’s difficult to justify paying the high prices for meat.

“We didn’t eat meat for a month or more. Yes, that affects our health, but we use available food like red beans to cover the lack of meat in our diets.”

‘A great happiness’

Halima is among the more than 92,500 people in Sudan that received a qurban meat pack from Islamic Relief in 2025.

Our team in Sudan focused on the most vulnerable groups, including displaced people like Halima, pregnant women, and people with chronic illnesses and disabilities.

Worldwide, Islamic Relief’s 2025 qurban distribution reached more than 3.2 million people in 29 countries, easing the burden on vulnerable families, supporting their nutrition and sharing the joy of Eid.

 “Eid al-Adha means everything to me,” Halima says. “It is a time when we thank Allah, but also a time when we meet with families and friends. But Eid after the war is not like before, we lost our houses and there are many things we can’t afford here in the camp.

“We haven’t eaten meat for months; we didn’t expect to get meat this Eid either. This has become a great happiness for my children. This has been a great help to my family.

“Since we have been displaced, Islamic Relief is the organisation that has supported us the most, including by providing some cleaning materials, recreational items, shelter [tent and plastic sheeting], in addition to qurban now.”

Fulfil your Qurban this Eid. Give generously to our Qurban Appeal to help us reach even more families like Halima’s in Sudan and beyond this year.

Shahnaz lives with her husband, two daughters and son in Rabnawaz village in Rajanpur, a district in Pakistan.

“My husband works as a daily wages labourer and we survive mostly off his income. I help during the harvest and receive some of the crop as payment. This helps supplement our income,” Shahnaz explains.

“Our standard of living is very basic. We often struggle to buy enough food, and meat is a rare luxury. We live in a small mud house and water leaks through the walls and ceiling when it rains.

“My children go to a nearby government school, but we can’t afford extra books or toys for them. When someone falls sick, we rely on government hospitals or home remedies. Still, we are grateful for whatever little we have, and I keep hoping for a better tomorrow.”

“Meat is not part of our daily diet. Months go by without it. My husband, my children and I feel the difference in our bodies. My husband wakes up tired. I also feel weak as I can’t work as long or as hard as I used to. Back pain, joint stiffness and body aches have become a routine part of life. My children are also suffering from malnutrition.

“Meat is like gold for us and I save money for days to buy healthy and nutritious food like meat for my children to make them happy and healthy. We only get enough [meat] on Eid al-Adha.

Bringing joy and happiness to Pakistan

Shahnaz is one of almost 75,000 people in Pakistan to receive a qurban meat parcel from Islamic Relief in 2025.

Worldwide, Islamic Relief’s 2025 qurban distribution reached more than 3.2 million people in 29 countries, easing the burden on vulnerable families, supporting their nutrition and sharing the joy of Eid.

“Eid al-Adha is the only time in the year when we eat meat properly,” Shahnaz says. “It brings joy and happiness to my family, especially my children, and a sense of equality. We feel included, like others. It reminds us that Allah provides and gives us hope to keep going despite hardships.

“The qurban meat pack brought happiness to our home. My children were excited to eat meat after a long time. It made our Eid special and gave us a feeling of being cared for. We felt blessed and thankful to those who shared with us.

“I want to say thank you to Islamic Relief for remembering families like ours. Your support brings home and dignity to our lives. May Allah bless you for your kindness and efforts.”

Fulfil your Qurban this Eid. Give generously to our Qurban Appeal to help us reach even more families like Shahnaz’s in Pakistan and beyond this year.

Yemen’s food security outlook remains extremely bleak, with serious challenges expected to continue through 2026, according to the United Nations. After 11 years of crisis, many families do not know where their next meal is coming from.

Here, Amr Amin, Islamic Relief Yemen’s Head of Food Security & Livelihoods (pictured below), discusses the challenges Yemeni families face.

Q: How severe is Yemen’s food crisis right now?

A: The situation is extremely serious. According to the latest IPC (Integrated Food Security Phase Classification) analysis, over 18 million people – nearly half the population – were severely food insecure during February 2026. There’s a risk that this number will remain unchanged, or worsen, in March as pressures mount. If we look back to January, Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) estimates put Yemen among the world’s most food‑insecure countries in January 2026.

In government-controlled areas, recent central bank interventions have temporarily strengthened the Yemeni riyal. They have also lowered food prices, making food easier to buy. However, these improvements are highly fragile.

In other areas, agricultural production prospects are weak. The likelihood of restoring large-scale humanitarian food assistance or other sectoral support also remains very low.

Yemen remains at risk of famine conditions in 2026. This risk will only intensify if the decline in humanitarian assistance continues or if new shocks – economic, climatic, or conflict-related – occur in the coming months.

Q: How many people depend entirely on humanitarian aid for food?

A: The most recent IPC analysis (covering conditions up to February 2026) indicates an estimated 18.3 million people (52% of the population) are acutely food insecure, facing IPC Phase 3+. This means they are unable to meet their basic food needs without external assistance.

Q: Funding for Yemen has been cut significantly. What has that meant in real terms for families on the ground?

A: Funding cuts in 2025 have pushed families deeper into hunger. In 2025, Yemen’s humanitarian response came under severe strain as the UN’s Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan (HNRP) received only 28% of the required funding – the lowest level since 2015.

This unprecedented gap has forced all humanitarian clusters to scale back, including Islamic Relief. Alarmingly, contributions to the World Food Programme (WFP) fell by over 70% between 2024 and 2025.

Islamic Relief has been working to enhance nutritional interventions to treat acute malnutrition in Yemen by distributing medicines and working with government health offices

Many households are skipping meals, relying on poor‑quality food, pulling children out of school to work, and selling their last remaining assets just to survive.

In areas not controlled by the government, all WFP operations have remained suspended since September 2025 due to operational access constraints.

Q: Are you having to choose who eats and who doesn’t? How are those decisions made?

A: Islamic Relief provides food assistance to those in need in Yemen throughout the year. We also provide additional support through our seasonal programmes, including Ramadan and zakat-ul-fitr food packages and qurbani meat distributions.

However, with the level of funding received in 2025-2026, the humanitarian community simply cannot reach every person in need.

Support now focuses on areas facing the most severe food insecurity. Families with children under 5, pregnant or breastfeeding women, people with disabilities or chronic illnesses, and those in active conflict zones or flood‑affected areas are considered at the highest risk.

These decisions are not made lightly. Yet, the painful reality remains: every time one family is prioritised for assistance, another equally desperate family is left without help.

Q: Is donor fatigue setting in after years of conflict? Why is funding declining despite clear humanitarian need?

A: Yes, donor fatigue is increasingly evident. Around the world, multiple crises are stretching donor budgets thinner than ever.

Islamic Relief is providing food assistance in Yemen throughout the year, as well as additional support through our seasonal programmes, including Ramadan and zakat-ul-fitr food packages and qurbani meat distributions

Within Yemen, operational challenges, particularly access restrictions, have made it harder for agencies to reach people in need, complicating donor engagement.

Q: If funding levels don’t improve, what will Yemen look like 6 months from now?

A: If current funding levels do not change, the outlook is deeply concerning.

Malnutrition rates are expected to worsen, particularly in the western coastal governorates, where vulnerabilities are already acute.

As resources shrink, more families will be driven toward harmful coping mechanisms – taking on unmanageable debt, moving in search of assistance, and resorting to early marriage or child labour for survival.

Q: What is your message to the international community watching this crisis unfold?

A: My message is both urgent and hopeful.

Yemen’s hunger crisis is severe, but it is not irresolvable.

Millions of people who once depended on humanitarian assistance are no longer receiving it, while food prices continue to rise and livelihoods continue to collapse.

However, with adequate funding, sustained humanitarian access, and support for livelihood recovery, the trajectory of this crisis can still be changed.

The window to prevent famine in Yemen is narrowing, but it has not yet closed. Now is the time to act and help ease suffering in Yemen.

Ibrahim Haidar Ja’man, 60 years old, lives in the Al-Judhoor area of Al-Tarf Al-Shami in Bayt Al-Faqih District, Yemen.

His extended household consists of six immediate family members: three sons and three daughters, who are all married. The sons have six children, and the daughters have ten children. In total, the entire extended family lives together in one compound.

The family’s home is primarily constructed from bamboo reeds, mud, and basic materials. One of Ibrahim’s sons has managed to build a stone room, and Ibrahim himself has also added a
small room. However, the rest of the structure remains made of reeds, wood, mud, and simple
bricks.

Heavy rains pose a significant risk: without covering essential belongings and food with plastic sheets, everything becomes damaged. In the first year of heavy rainfall, all the small huts in the compound were destroyed.

The broader area in Yemen, which includes Al-Judhoor, Al-Jarmouzi, and Al-Baziq, has only one school and one health post. There is no doctor available. In the case of illness, families must travel for an hour by motorcycle to reach Bayt Al-Faqih to find medical assistance.

Due to the lack of healthcare services, community members often resort to buying antibiotics, tablets, and injections from pharmacies and administering them at home without medical supervision, which sometimes results in injury or complications.

Education is also limited. The nearest functioning school is in Al-Jarmouzi, about 3 km away. Children attend irregularly because there is effectively no accessible school in their immediate area.

There is no public electricity. Previously, the family relied on kerosene lamps, gas lamps, and handheld torches. Today, thanks to small solar panels, they have basic lighting, but they still lack appliances such as fans, which are essential during extreme heat.

Residents in the area have long suffered from difficult economic conditions. Families collect firewood and sometimes charcoal to sell at the market. However, income is uncertain. Sometimes buyers are available, and other times people cannot afford to purchase.

Since childhood, Ibrahim recalls his father walking long distances to fill water containers from public wells or distant sources. Water collection was physically exhausting and often dangerous. Containers frequently fell and broke during transport, worsening the hardship.

A displaced man from “Kilo 16” later observed the community’s difficult situation and donated a small solar-powered system with a water tank located 3 km away. Families used to make the trip twice a day to fetch water.
The government had once installed a large water tank for the village, promising piped water, but when the war broke out the system was never completed and the tank remained unused for 20 years.
Recently, Islamic Relief assessed the abandoned tank and agreed to rehabilitate it. They repaired and
restored the structure, installed a solar pumping system, filled the tank, and connected pipelines to all the houses in the three nearby villages.

Today, water is available for every household, thanks to the functioning solar-powered water system. Only the installation of household taps remains to allow water to flow directly inside each home.

The new system has greatly eased the community’s suffering. Access to water, considered the most essential necessity of life, has brought significant relief, especially after years of walking long distances under the harsh sun.

Ibrahim expresses deep gratitude to the donor and Islamic Relief for providing water to every home:

“May God reward you and bless your path. Just as you provided us with water, may God provide you with goodness.”

Despite this major improvement, the community still faces significant needs related to: Food assistance, agricultural support, livestock support, and additional livelihood opportunities.

Islamic Relief has been supporting the people of Yemen since 1998. Please help us to continue this vital work.

Islamic Relief looks back on a year of standing in 2025 with communities suffering through crisis and hardship, with the support of our incredible donors and partners around the world.

Together, we touched an estimated 26.7 million* lives in 2025.

Across 35 countries, our staff and partners helped empower vulnerable communities to lift themselves out of poverty and weather desperate crises.

We delivered 607 projects, including 137 humanitarian aid interventions and 466 development projects.

As we reflect on some of the biggest moments of the year, we are grateful for the continued trust placed in us by the communities we serve and our donors, volunteers and colleagues.

January

The first weeks of the year bring some respite to the desperate crisis in Gaza when, after almost 500 days of relentless bombardment, a ceasefire comes into effect.

Islamic Relief begins expanding our support for vulnerable people in Gaza by working with our partners to provide more emergency relief, and making plans to scale up our response.

Heartbreakingly, the people of Gaza are plunged back into an unrelenting nightmare as Israel ends the ceasefire by resuming bombing and blocking aid.

In Gaza and around the world, Islamic Relief’s Winterisation program is helping families to survive the coldest months. In Bangladesh, we provide blankets, fuel and warm clothing to families in need.

While in Afghanistan, your donations help us bring warmth and hope to the country’s poorest province.

February

With the sighting of the crescent moon, Muslims around the world begin observing the holy month of Ramadan. Our annual Ramadan distribution program reaches more than 844,400 people in 32 countries with food to break their fast and ease their suffering.

March

Yemen marks the grim milestone of a decade of protracted crisis. Over the last 10 years, its people have weathered a brutal war, the worst cholera outbreak in modern history, malnutrition and severe economic decline.

Almost half of the population do not know where their next meal is coming from, and many have lost their livelihoods. Amid chronic desperation, Islamic Relief remains committed to providing lifesaving and life-changing support to Yemenis in need.

April

The crisis in Sudan enters its third year, with no end in sight to the conflict. An Islamic Relief aid worker on the ground writes of his unwavering humanitarian commitment amid a relentless cycle of displacement, hunger and fear.

May

Hunger remains 1 of the world’s most pressing crises, with millions of people around the world unsure where their next meal is coming from. On World Hunger Day, we highlight voices from Sudan, where families are surviving on the brink of starvation.

To alleviate hunger, our annual qurban distribution begins, bringing the joy of Eid and a rare opportunity to eat meat to many families in need around the world.

June

World Environment Day and World Refugee Day bring opportunities to spotlight 2 issues at the heart of Islamic Relief’s campaigns.

We share stories of how boreholes are beating plastic pollution in Somalia. Innovative latrines are restoring comfort and dignity in Bangladesh’s waterlogged villages.

July

Islamic Relief marks 30 years since the Srebrenica Genocide with a major campaign. We share stories of survival and resilience from families still picking up the pieces of their lives.

We also published our 2024 Annual Report, looking back on a year marked by enduring and devastating crises. A year in which we spent more money than ever before to support vulnerable people worldwide.

August

Severe flooding sweeps across large regions of Pakistan, affecting an estimated 6.9 million people. Islamic Relief is on the ground supporting affected families in Punjab within 48 hours. By mid-September, we reached over 100,000 people.

Meanwhile, hundreds of people continue to return to Afghanistan from neighbouring countries each day. They arrive as a part of a mass exodus that has been ongoing since September 2023. From morning until night, Islamic Relief staff work to support the returnees with information, food and water.

September

Islamic Relief launches an emergency appeal as Afghanistan is rocked by powerful earthquakes, which kill thousands and displace thousands more. We provide medical aid and begin distributing tents and meals to people who have lost everything.

October

October brings 2 grim anniversaries as both Gaza and Lebanon mark 2 years of crisis. We launch a campaign to secure sponsorship for the more than 7,000 orphaned children on our waiting list in Gaza as another ceasefire is agreed.

Islamic Relief also launches an appeal to support people affected by the strongest storm to hit Jamaica in modern history. The island was battered by Hurricane Melissa, which left people without homes and parts of the country submerged.

Amid these disasters, Islamic Relief staff also took time to reflect on the past, with an aid worker in Pakistan remembering the deadly Kashmir earthquake 20 years on.

November

Political leaders, civil society organisations and activists from around the world convene in Brazil for COP30. The annual climate summit brings tentative agreements on concrete steps needed to tackle the climate crisis, but many parties remain focused on reacting to short-term challenges, rather than planning for the future.

Islamic Relief launches our annual Winter Appeal to help vulnerable people stay warm during the harshest months. We also publish a new report on how community-led kitchens are saving lives in Sudan.

December

Devastating flooding sweeps across several Asian countries, affecting more than 1 million people in Indonesia and devastating parts of Thailand and Sri Lanka.

More than 1,000 people are killed and many more left homeless as roads remain impassible and food shortages loom. Islamic Relief begins working with the Indonesian navy to bring supplies to flood-affected areas, and launches a response in Sri Lanka.

We look towards 2026 with renewed vigour and determination to continue to honour your trust in us.

We know that the world’s crises will not end with the calendar year and that the suffering of many of the communities we serve will continue in 2026. The need for our work has never been greater, nor has our gratitude to the donors and partners who make it possible.

Thank you, once more, for your continued support.

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*Editor’s note: Figures are estimates based on projects’ whole duration, and include duplication. For example, one family in Gaza may have received a Ramadan food parcel and a winter survival kit, and so will have been counted twice in estimates.

Islamic Relief will publish our official impact data, which is subject to rigorous scrutiny and audit, in our 2025 Annual Report. The annual report will be published summer 2026.

Nada Abu Taleb has documented Yemen’s silent suffering as Islamic Relief’s Media and Communication Coordinator in the country. Now, she reveals what humanitarian work truly means in one of the world’s most neglected crises. 

World Humanitarian Day is a moment to pause, reflect, and remember why we choose to stand together amid crises. After nearly 15 years of humanitarian work, I have learned that to #ActForHumanity is not simply a theme; it’s a daily commitment, deeply personal and urgent, especially here in Yemen. 

As a Yemeni who has lived and worked through this crisis, I know that suffering is not a distant headline; it confronts us every day. I see it in the strained expressions of my neighbours, hear it in the despair of families struggling to survive. But amid these painful encounters are moments of profound dignity that stay etched in memory. 

I recall a mother who had just received a modest cash assistance package. Her hands held her child tightly. They were visibly malnourished, yet her eyes expressed overwhelming gratitude rather than complaint. In that moment, aid became about more than food or money; it became about dignity, it became about making people feel seen and valued. 

Another defining moment was my encounter with a displaced father living in a makeshift shelter after losing nearly everything: his home, livelihood, and even family members. Despite his burden, his greatest concern was maintaining his children’s sense of normality. “Even when we have nothing,” he said quietly, “I still make sure my children feel safe, clean, and believe things will get better.” This humble, steadfast courage reshaped my understanding of dignity. Humanitarian work is not merely about distributing aid; it’s about honouring people’s resilience, acknowledging their identity, and protecting the fragile sense of hope they still hold. 

Education: Yemen’s silent crisis 

While the world rightly recognises and responds to immediate crises like hunger and the need for shelter, Yemen’s overlooked crisis is the systematic erosion of our education system. Schools are emptying, teachers haven’t been paid, and children’s dreams are fading. I remember a classroom without doors or windows, children huddled together sharing torn notebooks. When asked about his dreams, one boy replied earnestly, “I want to be a pilot, but I don’t know if I will ever fly a plane. We can barely eat.” 

This stark realisation hit me deeply. Education is not a luxury, it’s the promise of a future. Without schooling, children lose more than knowledge; they lose structure, security, and the ability to envision a better tomorrow. Protecting education is protecting hope itself, yet this urgent truth rarely makes international headlines. That’s why Islamic Relief teams in Yemen are working to rebuild classrooms, train teachers, and create safe learning spaces in some of the hardest-hit communities. 

Finding strength in small acts 

Humanitarian workers frequently grapple with overwhelming despair. I recall one particularly difficult day, consumed by endless stories of families skipping meals, children leaving school, communities crushed by hardship. The scale of suffering was paralysing. 

But what pulled me back was the quiet joy of Eid celebrations. Families smiling because their children had new clothes, or because, for the first time in months, they had meat on their table. I remembered a father weeping quietly with relief as he watched his daughters recover from malnutrition, their laughter a testament to a small triumph. These moments of humanity remind me why this work matters, small gestures can reverberate deeply, sustaining hope amid despair. 

Innovating amid challenges 

The complexity of Yemen’s crisis, which is marked by checkpoints, instability, and dwindling funds, often hampers our physical presence in affected communities. Our office responds creatively, training colleagues in remote areas in photography and storytelling so the voices of the communities we support can be heard. This initiative ensures we can document, communicate, and respond swiftly, preserving transparency and maintaining critical connections even amid logistical nightmares. This adaptive resilience underscores the resourcefulness required to deliver impartial and dignified humanitarian assistance under seemingly impossible circumstances. 

Women’s silent strength 

Throughout this crisis, I have come to see my fellow Yemeni women quietly shoulder extraordinary burdens. Their courage often lies not in grand gestures but in daily persistence despite exhaustion, fear, or loss. Witnessing their quiet determination consistently reshapes my understanding of what true bravery looks like.  

But some of their strength also comes from Yemen’s extraordinary community solidarity. Where official systems fail, neighbours have stepped forward, sharing limited resources, organising responses, and ensuring no one is abandoned. This local strength profoundly shapes our humanitarian approach, reminding us that true assistance is collaborative, respectful, and humble. Our role is not to lead from above, but to support and amplify the resilience already thriving on the ground. 

The world’s shared responsibility 

Today, when global attention feels overstretched and crises rage everywhere, from Gaza to Sudan, solidarity is not a limited resource; it’s our shared responsibility. Acting for humanity means refusing to normalise suffering, no matter how frequent it becomes. It requires compassion, dignity, and fairness, consistently and urgently, even when no one is watching. 

Yemen is often misunderstood, painted simplistically as a land of endless conflict and helplessness. In reality, Yemenis are remarkably spirited and resourceful. Our task as humanitarian workers is not to save them, but to stand beside them, preserving dignity, amplifying their voices, and working towards sustainable recovery. 

On World Humanitarian Day, let us remember that behind every statistic, there’s a person with a story to tell. That is my job as a communicator. To act for humanity is to remain present, compassionate, and brave, even in the face of immense challenges. This work is not just our choice, but our collective answer to a world that desperately needs humanitarians. May our actions always reflect that calling. 

Families in Yemen are fighting for survival every day. With your support, Islamic Relief can deliver life-saving aid to those who need it most. Your donation can help provide food, medicine, and hope to vulnerable communities. Please donate to our Yemen Emergency Appeal today. 

As systems fail, displaced doctors operate without pay, families shelter strangers, and aid workers navigate chaos. Ahead of World Humanitarian Day, their #ActForHumanity in Sudan defies despair.

Two years of war have shattered Sudan’s already limited health services, leaving communities to shoulder the crisis. In Gedaref’s Alameen Hospital, an eastern Sudanese facility near the Ethiopian border, overcrowded wards force two patients to share a single bed. A third rests on a couch. Others, with nowhere else to go, receive treatment and vanish back into the streets they walked in from, carrying wounds and illnesses back to makeshift shelters.  

“The responsibility grows heavier every day,” says Dr. Abdalbasit Alameen, the hospital’s director. “People arrive having lost everything: homes, livelihoods, even the certainty of their next meal. Now imagine they also need lifesaving antibiotics we cannot provide.” 

A health system on life support 

When Khartoum’s medical factories were bombed, supply chains snapped. Now, Dr. Alameen’s hospital – serving 200,000+ displaced people - functions at 30% capacity. His team reuses gloves, rations anaesthesia, and faces impossible choices: “Repair the last infant incubator or buy malaria pills for 50 children?” Across conflict-affected areas, many facilities have shut or can no longer function safely, forcing families to travel long distances or go without care.  

As World Humanitarian Day approaches under the banner #ActforHumanity, the stories emerging from Gedaref, a border state absorbing wave after wave of displacement, reveal a painful truth: when institutions collapse, only the compassion of people and the persistence of aid workers keep the system going. Our organisation, alongside other international NGOs, works hand-in-hand with local communities to patch together what remains. 

Filling cracks in a system that is shattered 

From Islamic Relief’s field office in Gedaref, country director Elsadig Elnour witnesses both the desperation and determination. “We are not saviours but partners in a collective effort,” he says. “Our goal is to fill the gaps left by the shattered infrastructure, and ensure essential supplies and support reach those trying to survive in displacement camps and overstretched hospitals.” 

The complexity of Elsadig’s role mirrors the crisis itself: ensuring his staff coordinates deliveries of scarce medical supplies, emergency nutritional support, and logistical aid through fractured routes and volatile zones. “Every shipment we deliver represents days of negotiation, planning, and risk management,” he explains. “But the relief in exhausted doctors’ eyes and the quiet thanks from families remind us why we stay.” 

Communities as first responders 

About 70 kilometres from Gedaref town, in the village of Hamra in Gedaref State, Rabha Saeed has rebuilt a life in displacement.  “When displaced people approach your home, you simply take them in. You share your bread,” says Rabha, herself displaced from Omdurman after burying her sister amid airstrikes. She now shares a cramped home with 7 family members. “We arrived with nothing. No money, no food. But thank God, the community welcomed us.” 

This grassroots compassion defines Gedaref’s response. University students ran Ramadan campaigns collecting clothes, mosquito nets, and sorghum for new arrivals. Locals converted schools into shelters despite overcrowded classrooms and children sleeping on mud floors during the rains. Still, as Rabha notes, solidarity has limits: “If displaced people cannot find work, the burden falls on those who host them.” Rabha says. She is among many who lost government employment during the crisis. “INGOs gave us monthly support. When they left, we were left crying for ourselves.” We need organisations like Islamic Relief that stay back when most leave.  

Stand for humanity 

Elsadig echoes her call for action. “Humanitarian response isn’t just about immediate relief,” he says. “It’s about helping communities stand on their own again. Islamic Relief is committed to staying, but this work needs sustained investment and collective global action.” 

“The international community must act, not tomorrow, now. Our shared humanity demands it.” 

Donate to our Sudan emergency appeal now to help empower Sudan’s communities as they rebuild their own future. 

Displaced from Gaza and now living in another country in the Middle East, Islamic Relief’s Mariam* continues working tirelessly to support vulnerable people back home in Gaza, including her colleagues, who are facing incredible hardship. This World Humanitarian Day, we pay tribute to humanitarian workers doing all they can to support the people of Gaza. 

Mariam carries the weight of 2 wars.  

By day, she documents Gaza’s collapse in stark statistics: 90% of the population displaced, often multiple times; 71,000 children under 5 years old acutely malnourished, and critically, over 100 confirmed deaths from malnutrition so far – deaths that include children under 5. and no hospitals in North Gaza functioning as they either have been destroyed or forced to cease operations.  

By night, she counts personal losses: How many days since she last heard from her brother in northern Gaza, how long it’s been since her husband – also still in Gaza – last ate, how many nights she’s spent lying awake worrying about her sister and family. 

Since Mariam left Gaza 16 months ago, 2 phones are her tether to home. While a work device blinks with constant reports from colleagues, her personal phone holds precious voice notes from her husband. 

“This is my reality now, supporting and monitoring food distributions while wondering if my husband ate today,” says Mariam, who has been working for Islamic Relief for 16 years.  

“I review reports of infants starving to death in northern Gaza, then make breakfast for my own children.” 

When the helpers need help 

Now displaced and still supporting Islamic Relief’s response remotely, Mariam embodies both the extraordinary strength and impossible choices facing Palestinian aid workers.  

“My colleagues who are still in Gaza work under bombs with no safe place to sleep. All of them have been displaced – most more than once – yet they continue their work. I sit here with a roof and running water, supporting their efforts remotely. But we hold our breath every day until we know they are safe. We try to take as much workload off them as possible, even though we are under pressure ourselves, because we know they are working under unimaginable conditions. They are exhausted, traumatised, yet still show up every single day. How can I not do the same?”  

Over 483 aid workers, including 326 UN staff, have been killed in Gaza since October 2023. Mariam recounts an attack on a UN school sheltering displaced families – one of numerous such incidents targeting civilian shelters this year. In July this year, 3 staff members from Human Appeal were killed while doing their job.  

“That could have easily been one of us”, Mariam says. “I was working inside Gaza under the same risks, moving between distribution points and shelters, fully aware that any moment could be my last. The only difference between me and those we lost is chance. 

“This isn’t collateral damage, it is targeted,” Mariam adds. Among those killed were colleagues she once worked closely with, people she considered friends. One was Aseel Khudr, a nurse who lost her life while treating patients at Al-Sahaba Medical Centre. Another was a healthcare worker at an organisation Islamic Relief partners with, killed while fulfilling their humanitarian duty. 

The statistics Mariam monitors tell the story of Gaza’s collapse as a result of Israel’s systematic and deliberate destruction of everything people need for survival. Even after Israel allowed aid into Gaza in July, only 40% of UN-led convoys were completed. The rest were either denied or impeded by Israeli forces or suspended due to insecurity. 2 million people – almost everyone in Gaza – face acute food insecurity. People have been gunned down and bombed while trying to get food, with over 1,239 civilians killed and more than 8,152 wounded while seeking humanitarian assistance since May 2025. 

But numbers alone can’t capture what it means to deliver aid when the rules of war are being completely ignored with impunity. 

The women keeping Gaza alive 

What sustains Mariam is the women of Gaza — the doctors performing surgeries by the light of their phones, the teachers holding lessons in bombed-out buildings, the mothers inventing ways to stretch a cup of flour into 3 meals. She describes colleagues who spend mornings documenting war crimes and afternoons searching for firewood. 

“Before this war, we had washing machines, universities, and cinemas,” Mariam says. “Now, women wash clothes in sewage-contaminated water and teach maths in rubble.”  

Mariam pushes back against the stereotype that Palestinian women are somehow ‘used to’ hardship – that’s simply not true. “People looking from the outside might think we had lived like this all our lives, but in reality, [since October 2023] we have had to reinvent everything just to survive.” 

Mariam shares the story of Fatema, a graduate of Islamic Relief’s Orphan Sponsorship Program, who is now an aid worker herself.  

“I first met her when she was 12, when I was starting my own career. She was bright, writing poetry despite losing both parents,” Mariam says. “Years later, she joined our team.”  

Fatema’s husband and son were killed in an airstrike while she was at work.  

“When I saw her on TV crying, holding the toy she just bought for her son, my heart broke into pieces. Later, I learned she went back to work, with even more determination, because somehow, she didn’t let it break her. For me, she is the true meaning of strength and dignity in the middle of so much pain. Whenever I feel like giving in to exhaustion or despair, I think of her, and she reminds me why we keep going. 

What acting for humanity really requires 

For Mariam, this World Humanitarian Day’s slogan, #ActForHumanity, isn’t just a hashtag, but a daily practice with concrete demands: 

First, stop the weapons fuelling this catastrophe. “No more ‘deep concern’ statements while bombs keep falling. We need enforceable arms embargoes now.” 

Second, pressure Israel to end its blockade and guarantee unfettered aid access. “Every day our convoys are blocked means more children like Fatema’s son are buried in mass graves.” 

Right now, people are starving, drinking polluted water, and dying, not just from bombs but from hunger and preventable diseases. No hashtag can replace trucks filled with food, medicine, and fuel. Nor can it rebuild the homes, schools, and hospitals, reduced to rubble. 

Mariam adds that “acting for humanity also means seeing us as people, not numbers. For Gaza, it means listening to communities, respecting their dignity, and ensuring aid reaches the most vulnerable, in a fair and dignified way. It also means holding those who violate humanitarian law accountable, because silence in the face of this suffering is complicity.” 

And finally, she says, remember the displaced. “Whether in neighbouring countries or elsewhere, many Palestinians outside of Gaza are living without residency rights, school access, and healthcare. Survival shouldn’t be the endpoint of dignity.” And for those forced to flee Gaza, the right to return must never be forgotten.  

On World Humanitarian Day, Mariam hopes her message cuts through the noise: because true solidarity means showing up, not just when it is trending, but when it is terrifying and the world looks away.  

Islamic Relief continues delivering lifesaving aid in Gaza against almost-impossible odds. Support our Palestine Emergency Appeal today. 

*Name has been changed to protect confidentiality