Today's Edition
ISIDORA CIRIC (ABU DHABI)
The UAE has maintained its position as the world's largest humanitarian donor to Gaza in the first quarter of 2026, even as regional tensions placed added strain on global aid operations, according to recent data released by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
UAE contributions accounted for more than a quarter of the entire Gaza donation pool (26.2%) in the first three months of 2026. As of April 3, the country’s donations comprised $87,736,382 out of the $339.6 million global total reported to OCHA’s Financial Tracking Service (FTS) during the period.
The European Commission followed with 22.5% of total aid ($75.5 million), Germany at 11.3% ($37.9 million), Canada at 7% ($23.35 million), and Qatar at 5.3% ($17.8 million).
Across all aid tracked by OCHA’s FTS in Q1 2026, the UAE has so far contributed $94,336,382 - placing it among the top 15 global donors - with the remaining funds going to Sudan ($5 million) and Chad ($1.6 million).
The largest share of the UAE's overall donations was directed towards food security (47%), followed by healthcare (41.3%), coordination and support services (4.3%), water, sanitation and other activities (5.7%), and education (1.7%).
Last month alone, the UAE sent multiple aid shipments to Gaza under the long-running Operation Chivalrous Knight 3, carrying clothes, food and other necessities.
Under the directives of Sheikha Moza bint Suhail Al Khaili, the UAE has also dispatched an urgent shipment of medicines and medical supplies to the Strip valued at more than Dh2.7 million.
In Al Arish, the UAE Floating Hospital has continued receiving Palestinian patients from Gaza and providing daily treatment, surgeries, physiotherapy and dialysis throughout March. To date, the hospital has delivered more than 13,000 treatment services, carried out over 5,600 surgeries and provided more than 7,500 physiotherapy sessions. Since the Rafah crossing reopened last month, it has received 41 new Palestinian patients and their companions.
Separate initiatives during Ramadan and Eid included a mass iftar for around 2,000 residents in Al Zawayda, an Eid carnival for children in Gaza, and Eid celebrations for Palestinian patients and their families at the UAE Floating Hospital in Al Arish.
On March 28, Operation Chivalrous Knight 3 also organised a four-kilometre Zayed Marathon in central Gaza with 500 runners - the first such event after more than two years of halted athletics - in a bid to support youth and revive sporting activity amid the war’s disruption.
