Happy Mother’s Day! Whether you are a mother yourself, or you’re honoring the mothers, grandmothers, and other maternal figures in your life today, we can agree that being a mother is one of the most precious, miraculous gifts life can give us.

But today, in particular, I’m thinking about the mothers living in places where motherhood is dangerous, burdensome, or even a death sentence in the absolute worst cases.

I’m thinking about Gaza, where a healthy pregnancy is no longer possible; where every day is a fight for survival as hunger and malnutrition spread at a frightening speed.

I’m thinking about mother’s like Suhad, who described the horror of her conditions while awaiting her childbirth:

“The hospital is unbelievably overcrowded with so many deliveries. They told us that if we want to give birth in the ward, we should bring our own mattress and pillow,” Suhad shared.

“Today, I am scheduled for a C-section. Then I’ll return to the same suffering in the tent. It will be extremely difficult after the birth. From the physical pain to staying in an ice-cold tent — and there are no clothes for the baby. What has she done to be born into a situation like this?”

It’s heart wrenching to hear.

That’s why, today especially, I’m grateful to be working for an organization working tirelessly to make motherhood safer in places like Gaza, for women like Suhad.

UNFPA have delivered enough lifesaving medicine and equipment to support more than 10,000 births in Gaza over the past seven months — that’s over half of all births in Gaza.

On this special day, I’m personally asking you to make a commitment toward making motherhood safer by making a humanitarian gift so we can keep up this critical work.

This Mother’s Day, will you make a humanitarian gift to deliver lifesaving care to pregnant women, mothers, and newborns in Gaza and wherever your help is needed most? I can’t overstate the impact of your gift on the lives of those who have nothing right now.

The suffering must end and peace must prevail. We condemn the violence in Gaza, the West Bank, and Israel, including all sexual violence, and echo the UN Secretary-General’s call for a sustained humanitarian ceasefire and the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages by Hamas.

Thank you for being there for mothers, today and always.

Sincerely,

Anu Surendran
Chief Executive Officer
USA for UNFPA