Women face a new chapter of crisis in Gaza

Families are returning to neighbourhoods that have been bombed down to rubble, living among the ruins without food, clean water, or shelter. And many aid trucks are still being blocked by Israeli authorities, with only a trickle of supplies making it in. The humanitarian needs are staggering, and women continue to bear the brunt of the crisis.

The frontlines of crisis in Gaza

From the earliest days of the conflict, ActionAid’s partners in Palestine, mainly led by women and young people, have been at the forefront of the humanitarian response. Displaced alongside their communities, they have continued to deliver life-saving support and aid under unimaginable conditions.

“Our partners never left,” says Jamil Sawalmeh, Country Director of ActionAid Palestine. “They moved with the people, adapted to the chaos, and kept going – even as bombs fell and resources ran dry.”

Maisoon Abu Breik is a midwife at Al-Awda Hospital – ActionAid’s partner hospital in Nuseirat, Gaza. She remembers the challenges of working throughout unimaginable conditions.

“The most difficult moment I lived working at Al-Awda Hospital,” she recalls. “The targeting of the hospital caused immense pain and loss. We lost one of our co-workers right at the door of the delivery room.”

“We lived through famine during the siege. We survived on only one meal a day… We also had no access to clean drinking water. Most of the hospital’s water tanks were directly targeted and destroyed.”

Women on the edge of survival

The humanitarian crisis in Gaza has hit women and children the hardest for two the past two years. And now as winter approaches, women are facing a new chapter of brutal conditions, with most women giving birth in cold tents, without clean water, food, or medical care.

“We make do with scraps for blankets. I have only two sets of clothes for my baby,” says Raneen, a new mother in Gaza. “I used to be strong and healthy, but now I feel as weak as a baby chick. I feel dizzy and exhausted from malnutrition and a lack of minerals and nutrients. I suffered major hair loss. This just isn’t normal. We have no food, no nutrition – nothing at all. Day by day, I feel myself withering away.”

“Even tents and shelter are a struggle, especially with winter coming. I heard that many children died last winter from the cold. I’m trying and praying to God to keep my baby safe. Given everything we’ve lost in this war, I pray we survive this winter safely. We’re hoping for a decent tent to shelter us and our families and keep us safe.”

While ActionAid and our partners are working relentlessly to support pregnant women and mothers like Raneen, the blocking of aid by Israeli authorities is hindering efforts.

“Over recent weeks, dozens of life-saving shipments of water, food, tents, medical supplies and children’s clothing have been denied entry into Gaza by Israeli authorities,” says Jamil Sawalmeh, who has called on the international community to take action.  

“We demand immediate, unfettered humanitarian access to deliver food, clean water, shelter, and medical supplies. We must protect pregnant women and newborns, ensure safe delivery care and nutritional support. The international community must act now to prevent another wave of tragedy this winter.” 

A feminist, locally led response

As Gaza enters a new phase of crisis, ActionAid and our partners are scaling up a post-ceasefire response rooted in feminist, locally led action.

Our work is focused on meeting urgent needs while laying the groundwork for long-term recovery, ensuring women’s voices, labour and knowledge are central to decision making and resources, and accountability.

Here’s how we’re responding amid the challenges to deliver aid in Gaza:

• Food and cash assistance to help women and their families survive amid soaring prices and food shortages.
• Clean water and sanitation, including dignity kits and menstrual hygiene supplies.
• Clothing for women and children facing winter in makeshift shelters.
• Psychosocial support and mental health care for those coping with trauma and loss.
• Sexual and reproductive health services, including safe deliveries, gynaecological surgeries, postpartum care, family planning, and access to medicines and laboratory services. Women also receive health education to support long-term wellbeing. 
• Gender-based violence prevention and response, including case management, legal aid, safe spaces for women and girls, and training and awareness for community leaders on gender-based violence.
• Supporting women-led community bakeries that provide income opportunities and essential food supplies to communities. 

Global solidarity with Palestine

While our partners lead on the ground, ActionAid Australia is working to ensure their voices are heard by the international community and we continue to advocate to the Australian Government to:

• Demand a permanent ceasefire and an end to the Israeli occupation.
• Ensure full, unhindered humanitarian access to Gaza.
• Hold Israel accountable for violations of international humanitarian law, including the obstruction of aid and the targeting of civilians.

The ceasefire must be more than a pause. It must be a turning point — one that leads to justice, recovery, and dignity for the Palestinian people.

This is a critical moment for all of us to stand in solidarity with the people of Gaza.

You can support ActionAid’s humanitarian response in Gaza by donating to the Gaza Crisis Appeal. If you would like to support our advocacy to the Australian Government, you can add your name to our letter to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, calling on him to take action for Palestine.