Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds have made a $1 million donation to the International Committee to the Red Cross to “help children in Israel and Gaza,” an individual with knowledge of the donation told TheWrap.
The parents of four have frequently made a point of donating significant sums of money to causes they feel strongly about. Lively and Reynolds matched up to $1 million in donations to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees following the Russian invasion of Ukraine and $500,000 to the Water First Education & Training Inc.
The pair are the first celebrities to make a public donation since the current conflict began on Oct. 7. The ICRC has been established in Gaza for decades and has been supplying hospitals and medical centers in the Gaza Strip since the first day of the attacks.
In terms of how that donation might be spent, the organization has reported that three wastewater plants and two desalination plants are currently inoperable due to Israeli bombing and electricity shortages. Israel cut off electricity, fuel, water, and food to Gaza on Oct. 13.
The ICRC has also requested access to hostages currently being held in Gaza by Hamas in order to deliver necessary supplies and connect hostages with their family members in Israel and around the world.
“The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is scaling up to provide life-saving relief. But our teams will require pauses in the fighting to work safely and effectively,” the organization notes. “With a military siege in place, humanitarian organisations including the ICRC will not be able to assist such a massive displacement of people in Gaza. The needs are staggering, and humanitarian organizations must be able to increase aid operations.”
The donation comes on the heels of $2 million pledged to humanitarian groups by Disney, $2 million from Comcast and $1 million from Skydance.
The news was first reported by The Hollywood Reporter.
