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This Ramadan, Food Boxes Matter
Why hunger won’t just go away It’s here With Ramadan quickly approaching, Muslims around the world will fast from sunrise to sunset each day for 30 consecutive days. It is an arduous task, especially as the days have become longer and the weather gets hotter. It is a month where we further develop our spiritual enlightenment, exhibit greater empathy for our most vulnerable populations, and make sacrifices. Ramadan can serve as a monthlong reminder about how much we have…and how, unintentionally, we take food and water for granted. That is why it’s important to keep the populations in mind for whom food is either insufficient, difficult to access, or have…
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Fueling Foodboxes for Ramadan
Why IRUSA puts feeding people first in the holy month Yusuf Azmi When Ramadan arrives, it puts something into focus that we can take for granted on a daily basis. Food. All of a sudden, a month in the year falls upon us and we have to go without something that we are so used to the rest of the time. Being able to eat whenever we want. Restricted to only being able to eat during the hours of sunset to sunrise. We’re reminded of how fortunate we are to be afforded the blessing of not worrying when we can and can’t eat. Ramadan’s arrival also brings something else into focus.…
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5 Step Remedy for Ramadan Prep
A few select methods to win the month of mercy Yusuf Azmi Ramadan is only a few weeks away. Aside from preparing the iftar menu, it’s crucial that we prepare ourselves mentally and physically as well. To make the most of this month and do things the right way, here are some Ramadan preparation tips you ought to consider. 1. Work on Fasting The initial two or three days of Ramadan are the most challenging, both on our bodies and willpower. It takes time for our bodies to become acclimated to the long fasting hours, along with the appetite and exhaustion that accompanies them. So, an ideal way to beat…
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The Power of Water
A dispatch for World Water Day By Nabeeha Shah Water makes the world go round World Water Day focuses on the importance of clean water for all. According to the United Nations, 2.2 billion people around the world are living without access to safe water. This year, the focus is on groundwater – water we use for drinking, sanitation, food production, and industrial processes. Some areas in the world rely entirely on groundwater for their livelihoods. Safe water allows a mother to feed her child. To quench their thirst. It could mean the difference between life and death. To quench their thirst. It could mean the difference between life and…
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Madness the Middle East
An overview of Middle East humanitarian affairs By Iqra Abid Hasan In the last three years, the situation in the Middle East has deteriorated significantly. There is a humanitarian catastrophe looming in places like Lebanon, Syria, Palestine, and Yemen. Skyrocketing poverty and economic collapse threatens families across the region. Not so long ago, uprisings and wars in the Arab world dominated the agenda at United Nations General Assembly meetings in New York. Almost all of those conflicts have apparently reached a stalemate with the exception of bursts of violence scattered across time. Therefore, the world’s attention has shifted to other global challenges such as the coronavirus pandemic and climate change,…
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Syria: Eleven Years Long
The eleven years since Syria fell The Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories and the Syrian Golan, as well as the impacts of COVID19, create a crisis within a crisis for millions of people living there. In the age of social media and interconnectedness, it would be a travesty to ignore the grim situation that is currently occurring in Syria. All that numerous Syrian children have known throughout their lives is war. These dismal conditions have adversely affected their psychological, physical, and social wellbeing, endangering the eventual fate of children who will one day need to rebuild Syria. Humanitarian groups are unable to access many conflict zones, and there is not…
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Cyclone Batsirai Carves Through Madagascar and Zambia
Sudden natural disaster claims lives and cues immediate response By Iqra Abid Hasan “We saw only desolation: uprooted trees, fallen electric poles, roofs torn off by the wind, the city completely under water.” – Survivor An island rocked Cyclone Batsirai has devastated Madagascar after barreling into the Eastern coastline of the island, bringing winds of up to 100 mph. So far, 20 people have been confirmed dead and 48,000 people have been displaced. However, the UN World Food Program estimates as many as 150,000 people may have lost their homes. The city of Mananjary, just north of where the cyclone hit land, has been left in ruins with electricity unavailable…
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A Fatal Bronx Fire
Communities, led by West African families, mount responses and mourn A fire unseen for over 30 years It had been over three decades since a Bronx nightclub was set on fire claiming the lives of 87 people. The culprit spent his last days of a life sentence in 2016 behind bars. Early this January, countless families experience the horror of losing loved ones as a fire consumed the Twin Parks NW apartment building in the Bronx. Built as low-income housing in 1974, the building was home to ranging ethnicities. It most prominently featured West Africans who championed a tight-knit community. A Sunday morning of horror All residents of the complex…
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Afghanistan Disaster, from The Ground
IRUSA President Anwar Khan returns from Afghanistan In 2021, the rapid shift of power in Afghanistan left a vacuum for chaos among many communities still in recovery from a decades long war occurring right outside their front doors. Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) filled airport landing strips and even went as far as hanging from airplanes scheduled to exit the country. The U.S. has welcomed over 70,000 refugees since. IRUSA has mobilized volunteers and family services resources to assist those experiencing losing home and homeland in such a rapid manner. Islamic Relief USA was one of the first humanitarian organizations to mobilize cultural competent resources for Afghans arriving as well as…
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Yemen in the Crosshairs
Airstrikes blanket communities and leave fatalities By Syrah Rahman The civil war that continues to devastate the people of Yemen has once more hit the headlines. Air raids in the cities of Hodaida and Sa’ada have killed over 70 people and left hundreds more wounded. This attack, the deadliest in the region in over two years, has left aid agencies horrified at the disregard for civilian lives and infrastructure in a crisis that has been dubbed the world’s worst humanitarian crisis. An escalation in the crisis A recent escalation in the conflict that has been going on for more than six years resulted in the strike on January 21. Amongst…
