The Duke of Sussex has issued an emotional message while on a whirlwind two-day trip of Jordan, calling for help on the current ‘humanitarian catastrophe’ in Gaza
Prince Harry has delivered an urgent message to ask for the food and medical aid corridors to be opened to help people in Gaza in a new TV interview while on a trip to Jordan. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex travelled to the Middle East at the invitation of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) director-general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesu.
The invitation was extended for the Sussexes to learn more over a two-day trip about the tireless humanitarian effort to support the health and wellbeing of displaced Syrians and Palestinians who have sought sanctuary in Jordan over many decades. As the trip came to a close on Thursday, Harry spoke to Channel 4 News to issue his emotional plea.
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He said: “The aid corridors need to be opened and they are currently not,” adding that there is a need for “full access for humanitarian organisations to be able to deliver that aid to the people that need it the most”.
Speaking of his trip to Jordan, Harry said: “It was a really important time for us to collaborate and come here and shine a light and focus on the very real humanitarian catastrophe that has happened and continues.”
He went on to praise Jordan’s “moral leadership”, telling the news programme the country is doing “incredible work” for the region and is acting as “a humanitarian hub for the Middle East”.
Much of Harry and Meghan’s trip centred around shining light on the efforts to support vulnerable communities affected by conflict and displacement, as they visited Za’atari refugee camp on the first day of their trip, which provides temporary housing to tens of thousands of refugees.
Afterwards, the Duke and Duchess visited the Specialty Hospital in Amman where they held the hand of a burns victim from Gaza. They met 14-year-old Maria from Gaza, who had sustained severe burns on her right leg and foot, with Meghan smiling as she offered her a comforting hand.
On the second day of their whirlwind trip, Harry and Meghan visited the headquarters of the World Central Kitchen, where it co-ordinates and deploys a million hot meals across Gaza every day.
World Central Kitchen was the first philanthropic partnership established by Harry and Meghan through Archewell, and they remain active supporters of the organisation. In Jordan, Harry and Meghan looked engaged as they gathered alongside relief coordinators as food supplies intended for emergency distribution were demonstrated.
Monitoring screens showing bakery production and distribution logistics reinforced the vital role the Amman hub plays in delivering daily sustenance to families affected by conflict.
Philip Hall, British Ambassador to Jordan, thanked the Sussexes for travelling to the Middle East, saying on the first day of their trip: “So I would simply say thank you very much indeed for coming. Your visit, your support, your appreciation of the efforts that the United Nations, including of course, the World Health Organisation, the government of Jordan and others, are making here is enormously appreciated. So thank you for coming.”
