Israel to halt operations of several aid organisations in Gaza starting in 2026
Israel says suspensions are meant to prevent Hamas from exploiting aid, but humanitarian groups say it will harm civilians
Israel on Tuesday said it had suspended more than two dozen humanitarian organisations, including Médecins Sans Frontières and CARE, from operating in the Gaza Strip for failing to comply with new registration rules.
Israel said the rules were aimed at preventing Hamas and other militant groups from infiltrating the aid organisations. But the organisations said the rules were arbitrary and warned that the new ban would harm a civilian population desperately in need of humanitarian aid.
Israel has claimed throughout the war that Hamas was siphoning off aid supplies, a charge the UN and aid groups have denied. The new rules, announced by Israel early this year, require aid organisations to register the names of their workers and provide details about funding and operations in order to continue working in Gaza.
The new regulations included ideological requirements - including disqualifying organisations that have called for boycotts against Israel, denied the October 7 attack or expressed support for any of the international court cases against Israeli soldiers or leaders.
Israel’s Ministry of Diaspora Affairs said more than 30 groups - about 15 per cent of the organisations operating in Gaza - had failed to comply and that their operations would be suspended. It also said that Médecins Sans Frontières, one of the biggest and best-known groups in Gaza, had failed to respond to Israeli claims that some of its workers were affiliated with Hamas or Islamic Jihad.