We are deeply saddened by the tragic death of a staff member of CARE partner organization MA’AN Development Agency in Gaza following this week’s missile attack on a World Food Program (WFP) warehouse operated by MA’AN in Deir Al-Balah. The staff member and two other colleagues were seriously injured in the attack, suffering shrapnel wounds, according to MA’AN. They were treated in one of the few still-functioning hospitals, but the doctors were unable to save one of them.
The killed staff member, 42, a loving father of five and a dedicated humanitarian, is one of hundreds of humanitarian workers who have been unjustly killed by this senseless conflict. His death is yet another stark reminder of the daily threats to the safety and security of all humanitarian workers in Gaza, including our staff, and the risks they take to deliver assistance to those who desperately need it.
This attack on a flour distribution warehouse will only exacerbate an already catastrophic situation and further limit starving people’s access to scarce food supplies. In Gaza, MA’AN’s work includes the distribution of non-perishable food items and hot meals for displaced people to address food insecurity, malnutrition and hunger.
We wish to send sincere condolences to the bereaved family and hope the two other injured staff members of MA’AN will make a swift and full recovery. We express our heartfelt solidarity with all humanitarian workers in Gaza, who are the unsung heroes risking their lives every day to help bring much needed relief to a population enduring all kinds of unimaginable suffering for 15 months now.
The number of aid workers killed in Gaza over the past year is the highest ever to be recorded in a single crisis, despite repeated reminders that they must be protected in accordance with international law. The massive scale of killing and destruction has taken the lives of at least 45,000 people, including at least 333 humanitarian personnel, and injured more than 109,000. Palestinian aid workers continue to bear the brunt of the high risk of delivering aid to those who are desperately in need of it.
We call for a ceasefire now to end the bloodshed. We call on all parties to the conflict to respect their obligations under international humanitarian law, including to protect civilians, civilian infrastructure and humanitarian aid workers and to facilitate safe, unhindered and principled humanitarian access. We again call for the release of all hostages and those arbitrarily detained.
ENDS
Notes
See here for a statement from WFP condemning the warehouse attack, which came hours after a WFP convoy was also targeted: https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/01/1158746
For media enquiries contact Briony FitzGerald on 0404 117 927
About CARE International
Founded in 1945 with the creation of the CARE Package®, CARE is a leading humanitarian organization fighting global poverty. CARE places special focus on working alongside women and girls. Equipped with the proper resources women and girls have the power to lift whole families and entire communities out of poverty. In 2023, CARE worked in 109 countries, reaching 167 million people through more than 1,600 projects. To learn more, visit www.care.org.
About CARE Australia
CARE Australia supports women around the globe to save lives, defeat poverty and achieve social justice. We work in partnership with local communities to provide equal opportunities for women that they have long been denied: the ability to earn an income, gain access to their fair share of resources, to lead and participate in decisions that affect their lives, and to be able to withstand the increasing impacts of climate disasters and other crises. www.care.org.au
