(WASHINGTON, DC) – This week, The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques’ Campaign for the Relief of the Palestinian People in Gaza donated $5 million to secure basic food needs for refugees, in cooperation with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA). The donation will help provide families with food assistance under the Agency’s social safety-net program.

An agreement was signed yesterday between UNRWA Commissioner-General Filippo Grandi and the executive director of the Saudi Committee for the Relief of the Palestinian People, Mubarak Al-Bakr, one the sidelines of the UNRWA Advisory Commission meeting at the Dead Sea, Jordan.

Commissioner-General Grandi expressed his appreciation to the Kingdom for the contribution while praising the support of the late Crown Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz, God bless his soul, as a dedicated supporter of Palestinian refugees and of UNRWA. “In recognition of His Royal Highness’ outstanding humanitarian endeavors, the Agency would be honored to name this fund The Prince Nayef Fund for Feeding the Poorest in Gaza,” he said. “The continued access restrictions in Gaza have meant that 800,000 people are dependent on our food programs. As long as this situation continues, UNRWA will be forced to continue to seek donations such as this generous contribution from Saudi Arabia.”

In January 2009, Saudi Arabia launched The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Campaign for the Relief of the Palestinian People of Gaza. King Abdullah initiated the fund with a donation of $8 million. The Campaign is part of a broader humanitarian effort by the Kingdom to provide humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian people in Gaza.