The preparation of the “Mohammed bin Rashid Humanitarian Ark” has begun. Volunteers are racing against time to prepare 10 million meals for Gaza

Field work began on Sunday morning at the Dubai Exhibition Center – Expo to prepare the “Mohammed bin Rashid Humanitarian Ark”, which includes food baskets containing more than 10 million meals, as part of the efforts of Operation “Gallant Knight 3” launched by the UAE to support the brotherly Palestinian people and meet the urgent needs of the people of the Gaza Strip.

Since the early morning hours, the center has witnessed the influx of hundreds of volunteers, including citizens, residents, and children, carrying the spirit of solidarity and the desire to support the people of Gaza.

The preparation halls were filled with the voices of the organizational teams and rows of volunteers who worked in complete harmony to prepare food baskets intended for shipment on board the ship in the coming days. The hall turned into a huge humanitarian workshop, with extended tables containing various types of food and constant movement that reflects the volunteers’ race against time.

Each food basket is sufficient for a family of 5 people for an entire week, and includes 20 food items carefully selected to ensure variety, quality and nutritional value suitable for all age groups.

This effort is a translation of the UAE’s humanitarian message, its firm commitment to standing by our Palestinian brothers, and a continuation of the support provided to the residents of Gaza.

When the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives Foundation announced last November 25 the launch of the initiative to prepare the “Mohammed bin Rashid Humanitarian Ark”, to alleviate the suffering of the residents of the Gaza Strip and support them in light of the current difficult circumstances, it called on all members of society in the UAE to volunteer and participate in preparing meals and supporting the initiative.

The new food support comes as an extension of the assistance provided by the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives Foundation to the Palestinian brothers in Gaza, as the Foundation announced in January 2024 a contribution worth 43 million dirhams ($11.7 million) in direct food aid to the Gaza Strip, benefiting one million people, in cooperation with the World Food Programme.

The announcement of direct food aid in January 2024 came as a continuation of a long procession of giving, as His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, “may God protect him,” directed in 2023 to provide urgent aid to the Palestinian brothers in the amount of 50 million dirhams through the “Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives” Foundation, while “Dubai Humanitarian Affairs” transported, in September 2024, an urgent relief shipment. To the Gaza Strip via the Egyptian port of Al-Arish, it included 71.6 tons of basic medical supplies.

The Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives Foundation also pledged in January 2024 to provide about 37 million dirhams ($10 million) to support the health sector in Gaza to help it provide basic medical supplies to the population, especially children.

It is noteworthy that the total volume of spending by the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives Foundation, the largest of its kind in the region in the field of charitable, humanitarian, relief and community work, is more than 2.2 billion dirhams in the year 2024, benefiting about 149 million people in 118 countries around the world, within five main work axes: humanitarian and relief aid, health care and combating disease, spreading education and knowledge, innovating the future and leadership, and empowering communities.

The total volume of spending on initiatives, programs and projects within the humanitarian and relief aid axis during the year 2024 amounted to more than 944 million dirhams, benefiting more than 37 million people around the world.