In pictures: Women in front line aid work

From delivering aid in war zones to supporting survivors of gender-based violence, this gallery provides a glimpse of the work our female staff and volunteers do day in day out, touching and saving lives around the world.

Life is precarious in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Making her way over the ruins of destroyed buildings, an Islamic Relief aid worker in Gaza goes to check on the welfare of a sponsored child.

Tackling sexual violence in conflict zones is no easy task. Islamic Relief’s women’s centres in Iraq provide safe spaces for women to seek support. Here, our female staff in Yahyawa camp, Kirkuk, lead discussions that help keep women and girls safe.

Giving out food parcels is not all it takes to show we care. Islamic Relief staff go the extra mile for those in need, even if it means carrying a heavy sack to the home of an older lady in Kenya during Ramadan.

When disaster strikes, it uproots lives in more ways than we can imagine. In the aftermath of a deadly earthquake and tsunami in Indonesia, our friendly female staff help children overcome trauma at Islamic Relief’s child-friendly spaces.

For some women, seeing a female doctor is the only way they feel comfortable seeking help for their personal health issues. Here, in Somalia’s impoverished Belcad district, an Islamic Relief doctor provides vital medical services in a community where access to any kind of healthcare is a luxury.

Empowering women to earn a living is a core part of Islamic Relief’s livelihood and development work. In the Chechen Republic, Islamic Relief staff visit Tcitsaeva Malika, 62, at home in Chechen-aul. Tcitsaeva can now support her family better and give them a healthier diet, thanks to poultry farming.

In the wake of Typhoon Mangkhut, an Islamic Relief member of staff in the Philippines understands the needs of the community, including women, and introduces them to a scheme that will help them rebuild their livelihoods.

Women are the forefront of delivering our humanitarian aid programmes to communities around the world. Here, Islamic Relief’s female aid workers in Niger lead the distribution of meat packs to families in need.

Specialist care requires special staff. At our early intervention centre in Saida, Lebanon, female staff provide vulnerable children with a range of services including physiotherapy, speech therapy, counselling and education for children with additional support needs.

It is often women who are the caregivers in families and societies, especially when caring for children. Our volunteers give more than their time when they offer to help out at Islamic Relief, such as this young woman who teaches in a South African school.

Life goes on, even in the midst of a war zone. Our female staff are working in some of the most difficult and dangerous places such as in Yemen, where this aid worker is distributing essential winter survival items to vulnerable families.

Join in the conversation this World Humanitarian Day using #WomenHumanitarians.