Statement by Michelle Nunn, CARE US CEO: One year since October 7, 2023

October 7, 2024 - "October 7 is a day imprinted with death and sorrow. A year ago, a heinous act of terror resulted in the death of more than a thousand Israelis - men, women, children, old and young alike. It saw unspeakable violence, including sexual violence against women, the displacement of thousands of Israelis and the taking of hundreds of civilian hostages - many of whom have lost their lives or remain in captivity.

Since that day, we have witnessed a year of unprecedented misery, death, destruction, starvation, displacement, disease, detention, and gender-based violence, for the 2.2 million Palestinians living under a ruinous assault and siege of Gaza, with at least 41,000 dead so far - men, women, children, old and young alike.

The violence and conflict continue with no end in sight - engulfing the wider region, deepening the historic humanitarian disaster in Gaza, impacting hundreds of thousands in Lebanon, exacerbating violence in the West Bank, displacing people in Israel, and leaving needless death in its wake.

A year on since that tragic day, and decades into a brutal cycle of conflict and oppressive hardship, it's past time to end the violence, and protect civilian lives - all civilian lives - including those of aid workers. It is time for a ceasefire, the release of all hostages, and the facilitation of immediate, unhindered, and sustained access to humanitarian aid for the people of Gaza.

For the past year, and again today, I have hearkened back to the poet John Donne's invocation of our shared humanity - 'Each person's death diminishes me, for I am involved in mankind.' There are no winners in this catastrophe, and the fates of dead, hungry, or displaced women, children and families regardless of their faith, or where they live, will weigh heavy on our shared humanity. It is time to end the suffering."

- Michelle Nunn, President and CEO, CARE

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