What’s happening in Gaza and Israel? | Oxfam America

How did we get to this point?

On October 7, Hamas and other armed Palestinian groups carried out horrific, brutal attacks on civilians in Israel. A total of 1,139 people were killed and 240 were taken hostage. One hundred and fifteen people remain hostage in Gaza.

The Israeli government responded with airstrikes and ground attacks in Gaza, resulting in devastating casualties and injuries to Palestinian civilians. Israel also announced it was imposing a “total siege,” halting all food, water, and fuel supplies to Gaza.

No food arrived in Gaza between October 7 and 17, forcing the population to use what it had. On October 13, Israel ordered the evacuation of more than a million people from northern Gaza. The directive gave them just hours to pack up and leave, meaning their food supplies and access to farmland were lost overnight.

The Israeli military has occupied the Palestinian territory, which includes Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem, for 56 years. Israel has also imposed a blockade on Gaza since 2007, which has devastated Gaza’s economy, prevented most people from leaving, limited their access to basic services such as health care and cut off Palestinians from each other.

What is Oxfam doing in Gaza?

Despite the enormous challenges, Oxfam and our partners are currently implementing plans to provide food assistance to 115,000 of the most vulnerable people in Gaza by September. We plan to distribute ready-to-eat food parcels and vegetable baskets to 14,000 households, reaching 84,000 people. Oxfam also plans to provide $270 per family per month in cash assistance to 200 households in northern Gaza, reaching 1,200 people.