RAMALLAH, January 12, 2026 (WAFA) – The Government Operations Room for Emergency Interventions in the Gaza Strip reviewed, today the Ministry of Women’s Affairs’ plan for relief and early recovery in the Gaza Strip, in the presence of Minister of Women’s Affairs H.E. Mona Al-Khalili. The meeting is part of the government’s effort to present sectoral plans, strengthen coordination with partners, and to channel the available resources towards fair national priorities that respond to the needs of women and girls.
The plan aims to address the urgent humanitarian needs of women and girls amid the ongoing aggression and displacement through a comprehensive package of interventions, including protection, humanitarian assistance, psychosocial support, economic empowerment, and the integration of gender considerations into early recovery efforts. The plan upholds human dignity and strengthens community resilience.
Minister Al-Khalili stated that the plan is built around four core pillars; namely protection, prevention, participation, and accountability - with humanitarian assistance serving as a cross-cutting component that links emergency response with justice-based recovery and prevents the vulnerabilities.
Minister Al-Khalili emphasized that protecting and empowering women are national priorities and an integral part of the Palestinian people’s resilience and rights-based struggle against the occupation. She said that the plan aligns with the government’s national program, relevant national frameworks, and the State of Palestine’s international commitments, particularly the Women, Peace and Security agenda and UN Security Council Resolution 1325.
The Ministry of Women’s Affairs explained that the plan includes short-term cash assistance for women heads of households; support for women-led community initiatives addressing basic needs such as food, water, health, and education; active participation of women in relief and aid distribution efforts; and development of strategic shelter and protection responses.
The plan also features economic empowerment and employment initiatives, including job creation programs, the establishment of women’s cooperatives to rebuild livelihoods collectively, and capacity-building support for women entrepreneurs, aimed at enhancing self-reliance and reducing economic vulnerability.
Special emphasis is placed on mental and reproductive health through the provision of psychosocial support services for women affected by displacement and violence, and ensuring access to reproductive health services—particularly for mothers, pregnant and breastfeeding women, and women with disabilities—as essential components of the humanitarian response.
As part of early recovery, the plan includes the expansion of cash-for-work programs in partnership with the International Labour Organization and the Palestinian Employment Fund. The plan provides women with dignified income opportunities while supporting livelihoods and household resilience in line with decent work standards.
Under the accountability pillar, the Minister underscored the Ministry’s efforts to pursue international accountability for sexual violence committed by Israeli forces, announcing an invitation to the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls to visit Palestine in February to document cases and support international legal accountability mechanisms.
The ministry also highlighted its use of the National Registry of Sexual Violence as a national tool for monitoring, documenting, and analyzing patterns of sexual violence against women, supporting rights-based reporting, advocacy, accountability efforts, and evidence-based policymaking.
Samah Hamad, Chair of the Government Operations Room, affirmed that the plan constitutes a key component of the humanitarian response and early recovery framework, given its focus on protecting women and girls and integrating gender perspectives across government interventions.
She stressed the importance of coordination among ministries, international partners, and civil society to ensure limited resources are directed toward the most urgent priorities, enabling a fair and inclusive response that strengthens resilience in Gaza and lays the groundwork for sustainable recovery.
K.T
