The Muslim world wrapped up the Qurban Bayram holiday yesterday, marking an occasion focused on helping the needy. Charities in Turkey, which has stepped up its international humanitarian aid operations over the past decade, took the opportunity during bayram or the Festival of Sacrifice to deliver aid in the form of meat from sacrificial animals.

From the Zanzibar archipelago off the East African coast to the scenic plains of Nepal, from the besieged Gaza Strip to the Balkans, charities reached out to the poor by delivering packs of meat before and during bayram, a religious occasion where every Muslim who can afford it is required to slaughter livestock as sacrifice and distribute a portion of its meat to the poor.

Volunteers from the Turkish Diyanet Foundation (TDV) affiliated with the country's state-run religious affairs agency, visited 130 countries to deliver the aid. Zanzibar, a semi-autonomous region of Tanzania where a small Muslim population lives on the impoverished island of Tumbatu, was among the destinations the volunteers, accompanied by prominent Turkish wrestler Rıza Kayaalp, visited. Welcomed by hymns recited by schoolchildren, volunteers boarding boats, the only way to access the island, and delivered packages of meat to the community, where having a dish with meat is a rare occasion. In another far-flung corner of the globe, TDV members delivered 2,830 packs of meat to the poor in Philippines' Mindanao island during the bayram holiday. In line with Islamic practice, TDV slaughtered animals donated by the faithful in the countries where the aid is delivered. Nepalgunj, a Nepalese city with a predominantly Muslim population, was among the places where bayram donations took place amid an emotional welcome by locals. Some 20,000 families received meat aid in Nepal. The TDV also delivered aid in Afghanistan. In the Gaza Strip, where a suffocating Israeli blockade has deprived Palestinians of broader access to food and the majority of the population is dependent on foreign aid, the TDV delivered meat to tens of thousands of families during bayram.

The Turkish Red Crescent, another prominent charity, was at the forefront of Turkish efforts to expand humanitarian aid delivery during bayram. The charity, known for aid delivery in disaster-hit countries and conflict zones, delivered meat to 4,500 families in Syria's Jarablus, which was cleared of DAESH thanks to a Turkey-backed operation by Syrian rebels. Officials said the aid was a lifeline for the local population suffering from the DAESH threat for months as life returns to normal following Operation Euphrates Shield. Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Red Crescent official Fatih Kökcan said the charity mobilized as soon as Jarablus was liberated and had already been running mobile kitchens in the town before delivering packs of two kilograms of meat during the bayram holiday. More aid is under way for Syria even though the fragile security situation in the war-torn country poses a challenge for aid delivery and a large number of aid trucks are still waiting at the Turkish-Syrian border for entry.

The Red Crescent also delivered meat aid in the Central Asian country of Kyrgyzstan for 1,050 families. The aid concentrated on Meskhetian Turks in the country, an ethnic Turkic community of which most members in Ukraine were relocated to Turkey earlier this year.

Cansuyu, another Turkish charity, focused its operations in African countries. In Mali, the charity, cooperating with a local aid organization, delivered aid to some 100,000 people. Osman Diarra, a Malian charity's deputy president, said they were thankful to "Turkish friends and brothers who chose to spend the holiday with them for the aid delivery." Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Mesut Ceylan, a Cansuyu official, said Turkish aid showed Africa that "white people" can also be remembered as beneficiaries in the continent where they have been long associated with exploitation. Cansuyu also delivered aid in Chad, one of the poorest countries on the continent.

Doctors Worldwide, a Turkey-based charity primarily known for medical aid across the world, also delivered meat aid during bayram. Volunteers of the charity delivered aid in Chad, Niger, Kenya, Uganda, Gambia, Somalia, Afghanistan and Yemen, the countries where its members are active in providing free treatment and medicine aid to the needy.