How to Donate to Alleviate Suffering in Gaza
Gemini 2.5's best guesses on how to help effectively: UNRWA, B’Tselem, +972 Magazine.
Introduction
The scale of suffering in the Gaza Strip is catastrophic. This post provides a structured analysis of donation opportunities to alleviate suffering in Gaza, evaluating them through the lens of importance, tractability, and neglectedness.
This analysis presupposes that a donor has already made the decision to allocate funds to this specific crisis. It does not attempt to weigh the marginal impact of a donation here against other well-established EA cause areas. This article makes no claim that donating to Gaza is the highest-impact use of funds globally.
This post is mostly the work of Gemini 2.5, because I don't know enough about the space, but it has gone through a few iterations for fact-checking and corrections.
The Central Challenge: Why Donate When Aid is Blocked?
A crucial concern for any donor is the widely reported bottleneck of humanitarian aid at Gaza’s borders. Even in mid-2025, access remains the single greatest challenge. So, does more funding make a difference?
The bottleneck is political and logistical, not a lack of supplies, but funding remains critical for several reasons:
Sustaining the entire operation. Funding is essential to pay for warehousing, logistics, and the salaries of thousands of local Palestinian aid workers who are the backbone of the response inside Gaza. Without them, any aid that does get in could not be distributed.
Exploring alternative routes. New, expensive initiatives like maritime aid corridors require significant upfront investment, which donations can support.
Source: Throughout 2024 and 2025, humanitarian agencies have consistently reported that aid access is unpredictable and insufficient to meet the overwhelming needs. UN OCHA reports provide regular, detailed updates on these access constraints.
Category 1: Frontline Humanitarian Aid
Goal: To save lives and reduce suffering immediately.
Overall Category Winner: UNRWA
UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees)
Analysis. UNRWA is the single largest humanitarian actor in Gaza. It manages the sprawling shelters, runs primary healthcare clinics, and provides the logistical backbone for food distribution. In early 2024, it faced an acute funding crisis after several governments suspended aid over allegations against a small number of staff. While an independent review has since been completed and most of those donors (including Germany, Australia, and Sweden) have resumed funding, the agency’s financial situation remains dire. Its largest historical donor, the United States, has its funding frozen by a congressional ban until at least March 2025, leaving a massive, persistent shortfall. Therefore, UNRWA’s neglectedness score remains exceptionally high. It is no longer an acute shock, but a chronic, critical funding gap that private donors can help fill.
Source. The independent review of UNRWA, led by Catherine Colonna, found the agency to be “irreplaceable and indispensable.” The ongoing US funding ban and its impact are widely reported.
Verdict. The most critical, systemically important humanitarian donation due to the persistent, large-scale funding shortfall.
MSF (Doctors Without Borders, Médecins Sans Frontières)
Analysis. MSF provides hands-on emergency medical and surgical care inside Gaza. Their independence and long-standing presence give them high tractability even in the most difficult conditions. They are transparent about the challenges they face, and funding directly supports their ability to provide life-saving care. However I can’t find out what share of their budget goes to interventions for people in Gaza, and they don’t seem to support restricted donations.
Source. MSF provides regular, detailed updates on their activities and the challenges in Gaza.
Verdict. The top choice for front-line medical care, but not restricted to Gaza.
Category 2: Political Advocacy
Goal: To address the root causes of the conflict and advocate for human rights.
Overall Category Winner: B’Tselem
B’Tselem (The Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories)
Analysis. As a leading Israeli human rights organization, B’Tselem’s work is to document and publish violations of human rights in the occupied territories, with the goal of ending the occupation. Its unique position as an internal critic within Israeli society gives its voice significant weight and makes it a highly neglected area for those who shy away from political controversy. This is a long-term investment in changing the political conditions that create the crisis.
Source. B’Tselem’s mission and work are detailed on their “About Us” page.
Verdict. The top choice for long-term, root-cause advocacy from a unique and powerful position.
Category 3: Independent Journalism
Goal: To provide the credible, on-the-ground information that fuels effective advocacy and informs the public.
Overall Category Winner: +972 Magazine
+972 Magazine
Analysis. +972 is a non-profit, independent magazine run by a collective of Palestinian and Israeli journalists. It provides some of the most courageous and insightful reporting from the ground, offering a perspective free from state or corporate influence. In an environment rife with misinformation, supporting a trusted source of information is a foundational and highly neglected intervention. Their work is a public good that enables more effective action from everyone else.
Source. Learn about +972 Magazine’s mission and joint Jewish-Arab journalistic model.
Verdict. The most effective donation for supporting the information infrastructure that is essential for accountability and change.
Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ)
Analysis: CPJ’s Journalist Assistance program provides direct emergency grants for medical care, legal aid, and relocation to journalists targeted in conflict zones. With this war being the deadliest for journalists ever documented by CPJ, their work is tragically critical.
Source: The CPJ is tracking the shocking number of journalists killed in the conflict.
Verdict: A powerful way to directly support the individuals risking their lives to report from Gaza.
Final Ranking and Recommendation
While all the organizations listed are highly effective in their domain, UNRWA currently represents the most leveraged and systemically critical donation opportunity to prevent the most suffering with their dollar within this cause area.
Other Organizations Considered
For transparency, this analysis considered a number of other reputable organizations. While they did not make the final ranked list, they are all doing valuable work and may be of interest to donors.
Palestine Children’s Relief Fund (PCRF): A non-political NGO with deep local roots, focused on the medical and humanitarian needs of children.
Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP): A UK-based charity that works by supporting local partners and delivering medical supplies to strengthen the local healthcare system.
World Central Kitchen (WCK): An agile organization focused on providing mass-scale food aid.
Gisha: A highly specialized Israeli NGO focused on protecting the freedom of movement for Palestinians through legal action and advocacy.
Gaza Community Mental Health Programme (GCMHP): A vital local organization providing psychosocial support and building long-term community resilience.
Human Rights Watch (HRW): A major international advocacy organization whose influential reports help drive policy change, though it is less neglected than smaller, more specialized groups.