For immediate release 20 January 2009
JERUSALEM (18 January, 2009) Save the Children is moving quickly to move aid into Gaza and swiftly deliver it to
children and families in need, following the announcement of a ceasefire by all parties today. A truckload of 100 baby
kits, 150 hygiene kits and more than 1,400 packages of diapers prepared by Save the Children was transported this
morning into Gaza, where staff and local partners began delivering the items to families at UNRWA shelters in Beit
Lahiya and Jabalia.
Save the Children welcomes the ceasefire by all parties and hopes it will be sustained, paving the way for lasting peace
that will benefit all children both within Gaza and Israel. The agency also calls for sustained, unhindered humanitarian
access to humanitarian agencies to reach very vulnerable Gazan families with life-saving relief.
"Save the Children welcomes the immediate access for humanitarian agencies into Gaza following the ceasefire, which
allowed us to quickly move much-needed relief items into Gaza," said Annie Foster, Save the Children's team leader for
the Gaza emergency response. "The situation is still dire. Children and their families have been without basic services
and supplies for nearly a month. Our staff delivering supplies at one shelter today told us people broke out into
applause when diapers for infants and toddlers were delivered."
Save the Children Reaches More than 25,000 Children and Families with Aid Since the conflict began on December 27th, the
global humanitarian agency has reached more than 25,000 people, half of them children, with food packages in north and
south Gaza. An additional 4,000 people were reached today in Jabalia, Beit Lahia and East Gaza City with food parcels,
packages of diapers, baby kits (containing items such as blankets, baby clothing, diaper rash cream and diapers) and
hygiene kits (containing items such as hand soap, dish soap and toilet paper).
Over the next few days, Save the Children expects to deliver plastic carpets to act as a barrier between mattresses and
the cold ground, bottled water, clothing kits and food packages to families at shelters. In addition, Save the Children
is preparing hygiene and baby kits to be transported and distributed into Gaza.
"Save the Children is scaling up to be able to broaden our response in Gaza," said Annie Foster.
"Over 3,000 women have delivered newborns, often with little support, and without basic supplies to meet their babies'
specific needs. In addition, there has been no support for children suffering from the stress of what has been happening
around them."
In preparation for an expanded response, Save the Children submitted the names of five key emergency staff members to
the UN for its priority staff list to enter the area as soon as humanitarian agencies and additional personnel are
permitted to enter the conflict zone, and is renewing its global appeal for US$10 million to be able to scale-up its
relief efforts.
Helping Children Recover and Return to Normalcy "Our immediate focus is on meeting the life-saving needs of children and
their families. But, much more must be done to address the child-protection crisis that has developed as a result of
more than three weeks of fighting," added Foster.
Save the Children will print child-protection leaflets early next week for distribution with its other supplies. The
leaflets will feature help lines for children to call, with pictures on how to identify unexploded ordnance and other
dangers, and advice for parents on how to console their children if they are suffering from signs of stress. The
organisation also is packaging safe play kits for quick distribution to Gazan children, which will support their coping
mechanisms and allow a return to normalcy.
"The best way to deal with emotional distress is to get children back into a routine — that is, to sleep the night
through, play with their friends, go to school and return to their families," said Foster. "Our initial response will
focus on establishing areas where children have the space to be children."
Save the Children is accepting donations which will help us meet the most critical needs of children and their families
in Gaza. Please donate online www.savethechildren.org.nz or call 0800 167 168.
ENDS