More than 30 aid organizations’ permits will be suspended by Israel because they allegedly failed to comply with new requirements for operating in Gaza’s already devasted state, which is likely to worsen already dire conditions for Palestinians there.
Organisations facing bans as of January 1, 2026 have failed to meet new requirements for sharing detailed information about their staff, funding and operations, Israeli authorities said on Tuesday.
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The Israeli Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli said that while humanitarian assistance was welcome, “exploitation of humanitarian frameworks for terrorism” was not.
A coalition of foreign ministers from nations like the United Kingdom, Canada, France, Japan, and the Nordic nations demanded that Israel ensure nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) could deliver “sustained and predictable” aid, while also expressing serious concerns about the Strip’s humanitarian situation.
What will happen to Palestinians in Gaza if Israel suspends these aid organizations?
Why is Israel suspending these groups?
The decision to “strengthen and update” the regulations governing the activities of international NGOs in the Palestinian territory’s war-torn setting was described as a result of Israel’s decision.
The statement read, “Humanitarian organizations that do not comply with security and transparency requirements will have their licenses suspended.”
The ministry added that groups which had “failed to cooperate and refused to submit a list of their Palestinian employees in order to rule out any links to terrorism” had been formally notified that their licences would be revoked from January 1.
The aid organizations were given ten months to provide the requested information, the report claimed.
Among the banned organisations is medical charity Doctors Without Borders, known by its French initials MSF, which the ministry accused of employing two individuals with alleged links to Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, respectively, without providing any evidence for its claims.
The statement continued, “Despite repeated requests, the organization failed to fully disclose these individuals’ identities and responsibilities.”
In a statement to the AFP news agency, MSF claimed it would never “knowingly employ people engaged in military activity because they would “present a risk to our staff and our patients.”
The charity further stated that it “continues to engage and discuss with Israeli authorities”, and that it has “not yet received a decision on re-registration”.
More than 100 aid organizations criticized Israel earlier this year for preventing life-saving aid from reaching Gaza and demanded that it stop its “weaponization of aid” after it refused to let aid trucks enter the devastated area.
Which significant humanitarian organizations are prohibited in Gaza?
The 37 organisations or their divisions facing suspension or loss of licences to operate in Gaza include several major international aid agencies:
- Hunger Against Action
- ActionAid
- Solidaridad a la Alianza
- Campaign for the Children of Palestine
- CARE
- DanChurchAid
- Danish Refugee Council
- Humanity & Inclusion: Handicap International
- Japan International Volunteer Center
- Medecins du Monde France
- Swiss Medecins du Monde
- Medecins Sans Frontieres Belgium
- French Medecins Without Borders
- Netherlands Medecins Without Borders
- Medecins Sans Frontieres Spain
- El Mundo’s medical etiquette
- Mercy Corps
- Norwegian Refugee Council
- The Dutch affiliate of Oxfam Novib
- Premiere Internationale Urgence
- Terre des hommes Lausanne
- International Rescue Committee
- WeWorld-GVC
- World Vision International
- Relief International
- Fondazione AVSI
- Movement for Peace-MPDL
- American Friends Service Committee
- Medico International
- Swedish organization for Palestine Solidarity
- Defense for Children International
- Palestinians’ medical assistance in the UK
- Caritas Internationalis
- Caritas Jerusalem
- Near Eastern Church Council
- Oxfam Quebec
- War Child Holland
These organizations provide a variety of services, including psychological support, food distribution, shelter, water and sanitation, and healthcare.
Has Israel previously done this?
This is not the first time that Israel has taken steps to suspend or ban the operations of international humanitarian agencies providing support to Palestinians.
The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA)’s (IRW) presence in Israel was prohibited by the Israeli parliament in 2024, citing claims that some of its local staff members had participated in the Hamas-led attacks on southern Israel on October 7, 2023.   ,
UNRWA – the principal provider of aid, education, health and social services to Palestinian refugees across Gaza, the occupied West Bank and neighbouring countries for decades – strongly denied these allegations. UNRWA’s operations in the Palestinian territory were halted by the ban because Israel has access to Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
Israel’s accusations against UNRWA were disproven by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in October.
Nevertheless, Israel’s claims prompted the United States, historically UNRWA’s largest donor, to end funding. Many Western countries have since reinstated the organization’s funding, but many have also suspended it.
What about the civil society in Gaza?
The bans and restrictions on international and UN aid agencies are pillars of what Israel’s critics say are broader efforts by the country to make life in Gaza next to impossible for the Palestinian territory’s more than two million people, by destroying all elements of what any functional society needs.
Israel’s blockade of Gaza has stifled the movement of people and goods to the territory’s social and economic infrastructure for nearly 20 years. Despite the odds, the genocidal war between Israel and Palestine has destroyed what Palestinians there have laboriously built.
According to the latest United Nations data, Israel has killed 579 aid workers – including nearly 400 from UNRWA – since October 7, 2023. More than 1,700 health professionals, 140 civil defense personnel, and 256 journalists have been killed as a result. More than 71, 000 people have been killed overall in Gaza as a result of Israel’s genocidal war.
More than 80% of all buildings have been damaged or destroyed, including the 18 hospitals in Gaza, which have been hit by Israel, and the 93 percent of all school buildings and more than 63 university buildings. More than 77% of Gaza’s population is plagued by severe food shortages.
The UN has accused Israel of intentionally striking Gaza’s medical infrastructure and killing health workers in an effort to dismantle the enclave’s healthcare system.
The cost of clean water is prohibitive, and desalination facilities and sewage systems are severely affected, increasing the risk of disease.
Prior to Israel’s two-year genocidal war, Gaza’s water infrastructure was already in crisis, and ground battles with Israeli bombardment and ground incursions had already harmed more than 80% of the territory’s water infrastructure.
Against that backdrop of war, some aid organisations have said their Palestinian employees worry that if their details are shared with Israel, they might be targeted.
The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates “strongly” condemned Israel’s decision to introduce new registration requirements for relief organizations, warning that the new registration requirements could stop Gaza’s hundreds of thousands of people from receiving life-saving aid.
The ministry claimed that Israel has no legal authority over the occupied Palestinian territories, including Jerusalem, while mentioning that Palestinians are pleased with the humanitarian organizations’ efforts.
The European Union warned that suspension of aid groups in Gaza would block “life-saving” assistance from reaching the population.
In a post on X, EU humanitarian chief Hadja Lahbib declared, “The EU has been clear: the NGO registration law cannot be implemented in its current form.
There is no room for doubt that aid must be delivered to those in need under IHL (international humanitarian law).
How will it affect Palestinians in Gaza?
Oxfam stated to Al Jazeera that it hoped to be allowed to work there as a permanent resident.
According to Matt Grainger, head of media at Oxfam International, “we are aware of the potential risk of Israel refusing registration to a number of NGOs, including Oxfam.” “We understand that any final decision would only follow a formal letter from Israel and thereafter an appeal process. Our main priority is always to carry out our humanitarian work in Gaza.
As the humanitarian crisis gets worse, MSF claimed to the Reuters news agency that if it were barred from operating, it would be devastating.
“If MSF is prevented from working in Gaza, it will deprive hundreds of thousands of people from accessing medical care”, the group said, highlighting the stakes for civilians already struggling to access health services.
Shaina Low, spokesperson for the Norwegian Refugee Council, told Reuters that “at a time when needs in Gaza far exceed the available aid and services, Israel has and will continue to block life-saving aid from entering.”
The British Foreign Office and France and Canada both issued statements on Tuesday calling for Israel to support NGOs’ continued and predictable employment in Israel.
They said deregistration of the organisations would have a “severe impact on access to essential services, including healthcare”.
Source: Aljazeera
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