The Wolne Miasto Foundation has repeatedly delivered hot meals in places affected by the crisis. Her volunteers cooked, among others: on the Polish-Ukrainian border after the outbreak of war in 2022, or in south-eastern Turkey after the tragic earthquake in 2023. Last year, their field kitchens were built in the flooded Lower Silesia.
Now the foundation wants to move to the Gaza Strip. The Palestinian territory has suffered huge losses in the two-year war with Israel. Most buildings, farmlands and waterworks are destroyed. Over 67,000 were killed. Palestinians, and international organizations have been raising alarms for months about the spreading famine in Gaza caused by Israel's blocking of humanitarian aid supplies.
“We are aware of the danger”
– I plan to go there personally with the first group – says Mikołaj Rykowski, founder and president of Wolne Miasto. — We already have a declaration from the Polish army that it will transport us and our equipment to the region. We would like to land in Cairo and enter Gaza through the Rafah border crossing. We are waiting for the decision of the Israeli authorities to open it, he explains.
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Israel still controls all border crossings with the Gaza Strip. The entry of volunteers, their equipment and food products requires consent from the authorities of that country. Rykowski says that he is helped by “friends living in Israel” in obtaining permits. The Polish foundation has also cooperated in the past with the American organization World Central Kitchen, which is already present in Gaza. It was for her that Polish volunteer Damian Soból worked, and on April 1, 2024, he was killed in an Israeli attack.
Rykowski emphasizes that he personally knew Damian Sobol and was a friend of the murdered volunteer. “We are aware of the danger of this mission,” he admits. “But we see what happened a few days ago. We have a ceasefire, an attempt to return to peace. This opens the door for organizations like ours, he adds.
“If I have five proven people, we will manage”
On October 10, Israel and Hamas concluded a ceasefire negotiated with the participation of Donald Trump. The American president assures that it will lead to lasting peace, but in recent days both sides have accused each other of violating the terms of the truce. The future of the agreement is in doubt. Access for humanitarian organizations to the Gaza Strip is similarly uncertain.
Rykowski emphasizes, however, that he is only waiting for consent from Israel and the first group of Polish volunteers may set off as early as next week. — If we set up one kitchen, we will need five to ten people to operate it permanently. We are always joined by local volunteers. If I have five of my people proven in previous operations, we will be able to cope, says the head of Wolne Głos. He emphasizes that he has several dozen people in the queue willing to go, and a dozen or so people contact him every day.
One kitchen of his foundation consists of six field pots. All of them are wood-fired, so volunteers are not dependent on electricity or gas supplies. — We already have pallets of fuel ready that we want to take to Gaza. We are able to cook 10-12 thousand. hot meals a day – Rykowski points out.
– The most important thing is to bring our pots. We can't cope without them, we won't buy such equipment locally. These are perfect devices for crises. We have already fed millions of people with them, he adds. At the same time, the head of Wolne Miasto is asking donors for help. — We need certainty that we will have financial assistance throughout the duration of the project. That we won't be forced to end it after a few weeks, he explains. He estimates that Polish cuisine may stay in Gaza for “several months or even a year.”
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