Latest update on February 2026
Foreign Minister Tajani launched the “Food for Gaza” initiative on March 11, 2024, in a meeting in Rome with Qu Dongyu, Director-General of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Cindy McCain, Executive Director of the World Food Programme (WFP), and Xavier Castellanos, Deputy Secretary General of the International Federation of the Red Cross (IFRC).
The Food for Gaza initiative has the full support of Israel and the Palestinian National Authority, whose Foreign Ministers have identified it as a model to follow.
In recent months, the Council of Ministers extended the state of emergency for interventions in the Gaza Strip, increasing the financial contributions dedicated to the Food for Gaza project alone to approximately €40 million. This was also due to the new €10 million allocation to WHO and UNICEF to support hospitals, procure medicines, and support emergency medical and healthcare activities in the Gaza Strip.
The initiative consists of three components:
- Humanitarian aid
- Assistance and medical care
- Educational programs
HUMANITARIAN AID
Thanks to the Food for Gaza initiative, Italy has delivered approximately 2,300 tons of food, medical, and basic relief supplies to the Gaza Strip. The aid has been channelled through the World Food Program and the International Red Cross, authoritative and impartial institutions trusted by both sides.
Among the largest operations carried out to date, the WFP has distributed 2,000 tons of flour. Four convoys departed from Jordan over a period of approximately three weeks between July and August, with the aim of assisting approximately one million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
Furthermore, with the crucial collaboration of the Ministry of Defence, airdrops were carried out to drop approximately 100 tons of food directly into Gaza.
As part of the humanitarian aid, 15 special trucks were delivered to WFP in February 2025, later modified to serve as “forklifts” for the distribution of aid within the Gaza Strip. Furthermore, 15 tons of humanitarian aid, including basic necessities, such as blankets and hygiene supplies, were delivered along with the vehicles, intended to assist approximately 1,200 people.
In August 2025, 60 tons of nutrient-dense animal feed were also released into Gaza. This initiative was carried out in collaboration with the FAO. The first distribution cycle involves the provision of two bags (100 kg) to each shepherd with at least one head of cattle; the goal is to reach 200 verified beneficiaries. 3,500 veterinary kits for animal care are also expected to enter Gaza.
ASSISTANCE AND MEDICAL CARE
Italy has prioritised the welcome of sick Palestinian children. Medical operations have so far enabled 259 patients from Gaza to be admitted to healthcare facilities in Italy, together with their families, for a total of over 940 people.
The last group of Palestinians arrived in Italy from Gaza on 9 February on three humanitarian flights to Rome, Milan and Pisa. The operation involved 26 patients, all suffering from severe congenital diseases or major injuries and amputations, together with 91 accompanying persons – 117 people in total.
Such operations were made possible thanks to the coordination of the Prime Minister’s Office, jointly with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the Ministry of Defence, the Ministry of the Interior, and the Department of Civil Protection, in collaboration with the World Health Organization and the European Civil Protection Mechanism. The intense diplomatic activity that made these operations possible involved the Embassies of Italy in Tel Aviv and Cairo and the Consulate General in Jerusalem.
The healthcare facilities that have made themselves available for the latest operation are the Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, the Gemelli General Hospital, and the Umberto I General Hospital in Rome; the Santobono and dei Colli Hospitals in Naples; the Regina Margherita Hospital in Turin; the University Hospital of Padua; the San Gerardo Hospital in Monza; the ASST Niguarda in Milan; the Gaslini Institute in Genoa; and the Hospital of Perugia.
In the past, other healthcare facilities had also welcomed Palestinian patients, including: the Papa Giovanni XXIII Hospital in Bergamo; the Maggiore, Sant’Orsola, and Rizzoli Hospitals in Bologna; the Spedali Civili in Brescia; the Pineta Grande Hospital in Castel Volturno (Caserta); the Hospital of Catania; the Meyer Hospital in Florence; the Hospital of L’Aquila; Apuan Children’s Hospital in Massa; the IRCCS San Raffaele Institute for Clinical Research, the National Cancer Institute, the Vittore Buzzi Children’s Hospital, and the Milan General Hospital; the Modena General Hospital; the Cisanello Hospital in Pisa; the San Camillo Hospital in Rome; the Veris Delli Ponti Hospital in Scorrano (Lecce); the Cattinara Hospital in Trieste; the Sette Laghi Hospital in Varese; and the University Hospital of Verona.
Italy therefore confirms itself as the leading Western country – ahead of all other European countries combined – to have organized the transfer of patients from the Gaza Strip to specialized hospitals.
EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS
The Italian Foreign Ministry, in cooperation with the Ministry of University and Research and the Conference of Italian University Rectors (CRUI), has launched the “University Corridors” initiative to allow young Palestinian scholarship holders awarded scholarships by Italian universities to leave their country and be hosted in Italy.
To date, 227 students and researchers have arrived in Italy as part of reception operations carried out in recent months, coordinated by the Crisis Unit of the Italian Foreign Ministry. Some transfers were made possible thanks to special flights operated by the Guardia di Finanza, organised by the Civil Protection Department and the European Civil Protection Mechanism, with the contribution of CRUI.
More than 40 universities are currently involved, including the University of Bari, the University of Bergamo, the University of Bologna (Unibo), the University of Brescia, the University of Cagliari, the University of Calabria, the University of Camerino, the University of Catania, the University of Ferrara, the University of Foggia, the University of L’Aquila, the University of Macerata, the University of Milano–Bicocca, Bocconi University, the University of Milan (UniMi – La Statale), the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, the University of Molise, the University of Naples Federico II, Parthenope University of Naples, the University of Padua, the University of Palermo, the University of Parma, the University of Pavia, the University of Perugia, the University for Foreigners of Perugia, the University of Eastern Piedmont, the University of Pisa, Sapienza University of Rome, the University of Rome Tor Vergata, Roma Tre University, the University of Sassari, the University of Siena, the Polytechnic University of Turin, the University of Turin, the University of Trieste, the University of Tuscia, the University of Udine, the University of Urbino, the University of Varese–Insubria, Ca’ Foscari University of Venice and IUAV University of Venice.
The operation is the result of complex diplomatic efforts involving the authorities of Israel and Jordan — through the work of the Embassies in Tel Aviv and Amman, as well as the Consulate General in Jerusalem — which made it possible to open a channel for students admitted to Italian universities for the current academic year. Work is ongoing to allow further scholarship holders to be hosted in Italy in the near future.
More than 280 scholarships have been awarded to Palestinian students from Gaza, through both regular calls under the Italian university system and the “Italian Universities for Palestinian Students” (IUPALS) project, involving 41 Italian universities. In addition, over 50 scholarships have been awarded to Palestinian students residing in the West Bank.
Thanks to cooperation with the Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land and the John Paul II Foundation, Italy also organises Italian language courses in Bethlehem and Ramallah.
