From Tunis: Palestine Calls for Urgent Arab Action to End the Use of Hunger as a Weapon, Affirms Family Protection as a National Priority
Tunis – Minister of Social Development and Acting Minister of State for Relief Affairs, H.E. Dr. Samah Hamad, participated in the Arab Regional Preparatory Meeting for the Second World Summit for Social Development, held on 30 June 2025 in the Tunisian capital. The meeting was organized by the Council of Arab Ministers of Social Affairs and attended by ministers and representatives from Arab countries, as well as regional and international organizations.
In her address, Dr. Hamad delivered a powerful account of the humanitarian crisis in Palestine, emphasizing that thousands of Palestinian families have been left to face famine alone amid ongoing aggression, a suffocating blockade, and near-total collapse of essential services.
She stated: "What is happening in Gaza today is a deliberate use of hunger as a weapon—to break people’s will and force them into migration or surrender." She added that children are dying from hunger and cold, deprived of food, water, and medicine, while trucks full of humanitarian aid remain stalled only meters from Gaza’s borders.
Dr. Hamad presented a comprehensive overview of the Palestinian government’s efforts to confront the catastrophe despite limited resources and complex conditions. She noted that over 350,000 households were registered in the National Social Registry, and emergency cash assistance was delivered via digital wallets in Gaza throughout 2024, with efforts underway to secure funding for 2025.
She also highlighted the launch of the National Orphans Sponsorship Program, which now covers more than 46,000 children, and the resumption of the cash transfer program in the West Bank, which has shifted to monthly payments reaching over 31,000 families, including those with persons with disabilities and in extreme poverty.
The Minister elaborated on the experience of the Governmental Operations Room, established in January 2025 to manage emergency response in the southern governorates. This platform, she said, enabled high-level coordination with international institutions and civil society, helping to systematize relief within a regionally endorsed plan—before renewed Israeli bombardment destroyed infrastructure and targeted shelter centers.
Dr. Hamad emphasized that the West Bank is also facing a worsening humanitarian situation, with escalating violence, increasing displacement, and restrictions on aid entry, compounded by Israel’s ongoing withholding of clearance revenues—an intentional strategy to paralyze the Palestinian state's ability to respond to its citizens’ needs.
She reaffirmed the government’s commitment to a comprehensive approach based on the humanitarian-development-peace nexus (Nexus), integrating emergency relief with recovery and long-term development. This includes digitizing social services and expanding protection for vulnerable groups, such as mental health support, education, women’s empowerment, and child protection, using targeted digital tools.
In conclusion, Dr. Hamad asserted: “Palestine needs a just partnership that safeguards the right to life. Our children are not statistics—they are the future of this land. We must all act now to protect their existence and resilience.”