Atayeb kitchen

After the Death of Its Founder, Gaza Soup Kitchen Moves Forward | Eater

"Operating since February 2024 across three kitchens in both north and south Gaza, the operation feeds about 800 families a day and provides many with supplies so they can cook for themselves in their own encampments; for many displaced families, it may be the only source of food they have. Its 33-year-old founder, chef Mahmoud Almadhoun, had become something of an icon, known and beloved for his commitment to feeding his community; on November 30, he was killed by an Israeli drone attack while he was on his way to deliver produce to Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza. Five days later Amnesty International concluded that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza: “These acts include killings, causing serious bodily or mental harm and deliberately inflicting on Palestinians in Gaza conditions of life calculated to bring about their physical destruction,” said Agnès Callamard, secretary general of Amnesty International; the report repeatedly brought up the war crime of starvation, by “wilfully impeding relief supplies” and intentionally destroying agricultural land and infrastructure, and called on Israel to cease “the use of starvation of civilians as a method of warfare.” Mahmoud’s brother, Hani, told Eater, “There was no crossfire. There was nothing. It’s just a coward with a sophisticated weapon who wanted to kill a father of seven.” What began with Mahmoud buying up surplus from local farmers — “He bought overgrown zucchinis. There was a military campaign for two months, so people did not pick them, and they kept growing. So he bought these overgrown zucchinis, chopped them up, and added some tomato paste and seasoning. That was the first meal,” says Almadhoun — grew into an operation of about 45 people across three locations. The focus has been not just on feeding people but on making things they actually want to eat: “Most of the time, these food soup kitchens will make something like lentil soup or things that people are sick of,” says Almadhoun, with “lentil soup” meaning a bunch of lentils boiled in unseasoned water. The kitchens now rotate through four staple meals — seasoned rice, pasta, maftoul, and lentil soup — and add on wherever possible; at the Beach Camp outpost Hani and Mahmoud’s sister, Faten, make pastries and mini pizzas, and Hani credits the variety to the team of women working at that kitchen: “They’re a lot more sophisticated than a bunch of guys just putting some pasta together.” Following Mahmoud’s death there was an outpouring of support across social media — the operation has about 26,000 Instagram followers — and Hani suspects Mahmoud was targeted because of the aid work and international attention: “Mahmoud, and people like him, were doing God’s work. And that was good enough to put a target on his back,” he told CNN. “He was punished because he was helping people fight the famine.” Almadhoun notes that Gaza is facing a second winter under bombardment and basic supplies are harder to obtain and afford: onions, garlic, and salt are scarce, and a gallon of cooking oil “is like 30 bucks, but you could get the same gallon in the U.S. for $4 at an Aldi,” he says; overall supply costs have risen from about $1,500 to beyond $5,000. About 60 percent of those served are children. The kitchens continue to rely on donations via Venmo and GoFundMe from over 80 countries (a majority from the U.S.) and on purchases from local farmers and limited humanitarian aid, even as reports say a large share of food deliveries are being blocked at the border and some international aid groups have temporarily pulled back after attacks on aid workers. “If we don’t cook, we don’t eat,” says Almadhoun. A memorial service in Washington, D.C. on December 6 drew over 200 people who afterward dined on a meal of Palestinian food." - Jaya Saxena