The Weeknd Pledges $2 Million to Provide Food for Humanitarian Support in Gaza
Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye has donated $2 million from his XO Humanitarian Fund in an effort to provide 18 million loaves of bread to help families in Gaza.
The donation was made in tandem with the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), which will provide 1,500 metric tons of fortified wheat flour to feed more than 157,000 Palestinians. It comes on the heels of a previous donation of $2.5 million from the Weeknd in Dec. 2023. That funding provided 820 metric tons of food parcels to feed 173,000 Palestinians for two weeks. He is also calling on fans to provide donations to those in need in Gaza.
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The news comes in a growing line of donations made by the philanthropic singer. In January, he donated to the Los Angeles-based organization School on Wheels to support more than 1,000 students experiencing homelessness. He also gave millions of dollars to charitable organizations in recent years including Ethiopia, Lebanon, Covid relief and more.
“With famine looming in Gaza, Abel’s generous support will provide vital relief for thousands of Palestinian families who battle the grip of hunger every day. We are tremendously grateful for his contribution, compassion and for his unwavering advocacy for WFP and the people of Palestine,” said WFP’s Director for the Middle East, North Africa and Eastern Europe Region, Corinne Fleischer.
“We are very grateful for Abel’s continued support as WFP works to respond to the urgent hunger crisis in Gaza,” said Barron Segar, president and CEO, World Food Program USA. “Hunger is a human-made problem, and as such, it is solvable. We have enough food in this world to feed everyone; all we need is the funding and safe access to make it happen. Thanks to Abel’s designation, families and children will receive the food they so desperately need.”
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