Gaza: More than 150 international aid agencies and non-governmental organizations have jointly called for the shutdown of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a relief body backed by Israel and the United States, citing serious humanitarian concerns.
According to the organizations—including Oxfam, Save the Children, and Amnesty International—the GHF began operations in May following a three-month-long Israeli blockade on Gaza. Since then, they claim, over 500 Palestinians awaiting aid have been killed and nearly 4,000 wounded.
In a strongly worded joint statement released Tuesday, the groups accused the GHF of violating core humanitarian principles and pushing nearly 2 million Palestinians into overcrowded and militarized zones. “Since GHF began operating, medical workers, eyewitnesses, and Gaza’s Hamas-run Ministry of Health have reported near-daily incidents of Israeli forces opening fire on civilians waiting for aid,” the statement read.
The number of aid distribution sites in Gaza has also drastically declined—from 400 to just four—now restricted to areas under direct Israeli military control. This, the organizations argue, has left civilians with impossible choices.
“Today, Palestinians are left with two impossible options: starve or risk their lives trying to secure food for their families,” the statement said. “Among the dead are orphaned children and their caregivers. More than half of the casualties at these sites are children.”
The Israeli military has denied deliberately targeting civilians awaiting aid and defended the GHF system, saying the foundation operates independently of Hamas and delivers assistance directly to those in need.
However, humanitarian groups contend that the GHF’s presence has only exacerbated the crisis. “Aid distribution under GHF is not only failing to protect lives but is actively putting them at risk,” said a spokesperson for one of the signatory organizations.
The growing criticism of the GHF highlights deepening concerns over Israel’s handling of humanitarian operations in Gaza, with international observers warning that the current system is unsustainable and morally untenable.
