6 reliable charities for those looking to help civilians affected by the Israel-Hamas war
As the war between Hamas and Israel intensifies, threatening to expand beyond the immediate region, many are wondering what they can do to help.
At least 2,837 people have been killed in Israel and Gaza since Oct. 7, when Hamas militants stormed from the Gaza Strip into nearby Israeli towns. An additional 10,000 people have been wounded, including more than 2,100 children, according to a Friday statement from UNICEF.
The situation looks to further deteriorate, as a retaliating Israel on Friday ordered more than 1 million Gaza residents to evacuate their homes in 24 hours—a move the United Nations said was impossible.
“With ongoing airstrikes and closed borders, civilians have no safe place to go,” the World Health Organization said in a Friday statement, speaking of Gaza citizens, about half of whom are children and teens.
“Hundreds and hundreds of children have been killed and injured,” UNICEF spokesperson James Elder said at a Friday press briefing at Palais des Nations in Geneva. “Every hour in Gaza, the number of children killed rises. The killing of children must stop.”
For those who weren’t ordered to leave their homes, the situation is still incredibly dire. The territory has “practically run out of food, water, electricity, medicine, and safe access to hospitals,” he added.
Humanitarian conditions have “reached lethal lows,” he said, with Gaza residents at a heightened risk of disease, according to the WHO, and “inescapable risk of starvation,” according to the U.N.
Medical supplies staged at Egypt’s Rafah crossing, the only potential entry point into Gaza, haven’t made it in, according to the WHO, because the crossing is closed, having been hit repeatedly by Israeli forces.
UNICEF, meanwhile, said Friday that it and partners were on the ground in Gaza, delivering aid that included medical supplies, fuel, and mental health support.
Here is a list of reliable charities and organizations you can donate to, if you’re seeking to financially assist those affected by the conflict.
Doctors Without Borders: The international group’s workers, hailing from more than 70 countries, bring emergency medical care where it’s most needed, regardless of race, religion, and politics. Because Israel has a strong health system and Gaza and the West Bank do not, it’s been working in the latter for 20 years and continues to. However, it’s offered support to Israeli hospitals treating a high number of casualties, it says.
Doctors Without Borders received a 98% score from Charity Navigator, a nonprofit that evaluates other nonprofits, enabling donors to make good decisions. It received four out of four possible stars from the organization, meaning it exceeds or meets best practices and industry standards and is likely to be a highly effective charity. Donate here.
International Committee of the Red Cross: ICRC is a humanitarian organization that helps those affected by conflict around the world, with a mission that stems from the Geneva Convention of 1949. It partners with chapters of the Red Cross and Red Crescent throughout the globe, and its neutral workers visit detainees in both Israel and Palestine. The group also helps improve access to essentials like water and electricity, it says.
ICRC has not been rated by Charity Navigator, which only rates U.S.-based charities. Donate here.
IsraAID: This global NGO is based in Tel Aviv, Israel, with a mission of supporting people affected by crises like natural disasters, post-conflict situations, and epidemics. The group says it’s housing evacuees from Gaza, operating child-friendly spaces where kids can play and process, and distributing resilience kits to families, among other tasks.
IsraAID has not been rated by Charity Navigator, which only rates U.S.-based charities. Donate here.
Save the Children: This NGO, founded after World War I, says it’s standing by to protect and assist children in both Gaza and Israel. It’s working with the UN in hopes of renegotiating humanitarian corridors, and has been aiding Palestinian children impacted by conflict since 1953, it says.
Save the Children received a 97% score from Charity Navigator, and received four out of four possible stars. Donate here.
UNICEF: Short for the United Nations Children’s Fund, the organization, established by the UN after World War II, works to improve the lives of children in more than 190 countries and territories. It has staff delivering support in Gaza, the organization said in a Friday news release.
UNICEF received a 92% score from Charity Navigator, and received four out of four possible stars. Donate here.
URNWA: The United Nations Relief and Workers Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East was established by the UN after the 1949 Arab-Israeli War, with a mission of carrying out direct relief programs for Palestine refugees. Nearly 6 million people are eligible for its services, according to the organization, which operates in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, the Gaza Strip, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria. Since Oct. 7, more than 270,000 refugees have populated its shelters, it says.
URNWA has not been rated by Charity Navigator, which only rates U.S.-based charities. Donate here.