World Central Kitchen Resumes Rafah Operations a Month After 7 Staff Killed in Israeli Strike
(Arab World Press) - The World Central Kitchen (WCK) organisation has resumed its operations in the Gaza Strip, nearly a month after the deaths of seven of its members in an Israeli strike. Displaced children, women, and men have returned to queue up outside its field kitchen in the city of Rafah.
Displaced Palestinian, Ashraf Jabr, who said he has been dependent on the organisation for meals since before the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, expressed his immense relief at the kitchen resuming its operations.
Jabr said, “I have 12 people to feed. When I stopped working, I was no longer able to feed my family because I have no money and no one to support me. This kitchen is our only hope, and it is also cleanest.”
The humanitarian non-governmental organisation announced in a statement that it would resume its meal provision in the Gaza Strip under the same previous capacity, aiming to help as many displaced Palestinians as possible.
The statement noted that WCK has so far managed to hand out over 43 million meals in Gaza.
Mohammed al-Kadrah, a chef working with the WCK in Rafah, expressed his hopes of receiving protection for the organisation’s staff so they can continue providing displaced Palestinians with food.
On April 2, WCK announced the killing of seven of its team members in an Israeli airstrike in Deir al-Balah, forcing it to suspend its operations for about a month.