By Ibrahim al-Khazen
ANKARA (AA) – Donors pledged more than $2 billion in aid to the Gaza Strip during a conference in Kuwait on Sunday amid a deadly Israeli onslaught on the Palestinian enclave.
The conference was organized by the International Islamic Charitable Organization (IICO) and the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
"The main purpose of the conference was to shed light on the unfortunate humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip,” IICO general manager Bader Saud Al-Sumait said in a statement cited by Al-Rai newspaper.
He said the conference’s recommendations included launching an urgent humanitarian appeal and a worldwide appeal “for urgent intervention to stop the ongoing humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza.”
Donors said that the pledged funds would be dispersed over two years, with the possibility of an extension.
The conference called on the UN humanitarian agencies and humanitarian organizations “to quickly participate in the initiative to enhance humanitarian interventions and early recovery in the Gaza Strip.”
It also called for forming a joint committee among the organizers to enhance communication and follow up on implementing the announced programs.
Israel has killed more than 35,000 Palestinians, the vast majority of whom have been women and children, and injured over 78,600 others since a Hamas attack last Oct. 7 that killed 1,200 people.
Tel Aviv has also imposed a crippling blockade on the Palestinian enclave, leaving its entire population on the verge of starvation.
Over seven months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins, pushing 85% of the enclave’s population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine, according to the UN.
Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January said it is "plausible" that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza and ordered Tel Aviv to stop such acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.
*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala