Families across Gaza are struggling to secure food as community kitchens operate irregularly, prices rise, and humanitarian aid remains limited and unpredictable. Gaza City — Mervat Radwan, a resident of a displacement camp, expresses relief when the community kitchen serves lunch. She walks to the kitchen with her six-year-old nephew, Ubay, but often finds the meal insufficient for her seven-person household, requiring her to supplement it with items from aid parcels. "Sometimes they give us a cooked meal, but it isn’t enough for seven people, so I try to find something besides it," Radwan told Al Jazeera.
Community kitchens are crucial for families with little or no income in Gaza, but their operations have fluctuated sharply in recent months. The kitchen near Radwan’s site was closed for nearly two months before resuming services for just two days a week. According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, daily meal production in Gaza fell from about 1.5 million meals via 165 kitchens in mid-March to 698,000 served by 102 kitchens by July. This reduction has been attributed to severe funding shortages and rising operational costs, with charities struggling to secure sufficient food or cooking supplies.
Radwan, 45, became the guardian of her three nephews after an Israeli air attack in northern Gaza on October 18, 2024, killed her brother Mohammad, 38, his wife Anwar, 33, and their one-year-old son Yosuf. Their three other children survived but suffered injuries, including shrapnel lodged in Nayef's head and burns on Habib's body. For the past nine months, they have lived in a tent in Deir el-Balah with Radwan, her 70-year-old father, and her 40-year-old sister, Sanaa. None of the caregivers has a regular income, relying on aid and charity for survival.
The children are psychologically affected by the loss of their parents, and their frail state is worsened by the family’s inability to secure basic necessities, including food. "It’s not just about taking them in; there is a lot of responsibility … food, drink, expenses, everything they need," Radwan stated. When food is scarce, adults skip meals to ensure children have enough to eat. "My elderly father won’t eat until he knows his grandchildren have had enough … Maybe this is the most we can do in these difficult circumstances," she added.
Meat is considered a luxury, and fresh vegetables are hard to find due to high costs. Some organizations occasionally distribute vegetables, but supplies are inconsistent. For Habib, recovery depends on proper nutrition, but 1kg of cucumbers costs about 15 shekels ($4.50), and tomatoes cost 10 to 12 shekels ($3-3.60), prices the family struggles to afford. "If Ubay wants cucumbers, and the children like cucumbers, I buy three cucumbers, that’s it," Radwan explained.
The World Food Programme reported in July that many households in Gaza face challenges sourcing fresh vegetables, fruit, and protein due to high prices, with about 77 percent of households reporting difficulties. The limited diet is impacting the children’s health, with Habib suffering from kidney stones attributed to a high-salt diet primarily consisting of canned goods. Changing his diet is challenging due to the high cost of fresh food and the reliance on aid supplies, which mainly consist of canned items. For families like the Radwans, food assistance from charities is essential for survival, but the lack of dietary diversity is adversely affecting their health.