Thu Jan 01 16:56:57 UTC 2026: News Article:

Israel’s Aid Ban Threatens to Cut Off Essential Care for Hundreds of Thousands of Palestinians in Gaza

Gaza City – Israel is facing growing international condemnation for enforcing a ban on dozens of international aid organizations operating in the Gaza Strip. The ban, which went into effect recently, revokes the operating licenses of 37 aid groups, including Doctors Without Borders (MSF) and the Norwegian Refugee Council, for allegedly failing to comply with new government regulations.

These new regulations require international NGOs to provide detailed information on staff members, funding, and operations. Israel defends the move by claiming links between these organizations and Hamas or Palestinian Islamic Jihad, though no evidence has been provided.

Human rights organizations, including 17 based in Israel, have denounced the ban, stating that it “undermines principled humanitarian action, endangers staff and communities, and compromises effective aid delivery.” They argue that Israel, as the occupying power, has an obligation to ensure adequate supplies to Palestinian civilians, a duty they say Israel is failing to meet.

Critics say the new regulations violate humanitarian principles by requiring the disclosure of sensitive personal data, potentially endangering aid workers and their families. United Nations human rights chief Volker Turk has called the ban “the latest in a pattern of unlawful restrictions on humanitarian access” in the occupied Palestinian territory.

Doctors Without Borders warns that if the ban continues, “hundreds of thousands of Palestinians would be cut off from essential care,” as the Palestinian health system is already decimated and struggling to meet basic needs.

Former UN humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths called the affected agencies “essential to aid delivery” in Gaza, highlighting their crucial role in providing aid to those in need. The situation is further complicated by ongoing Israeli military actions and restrictions on humanitarian aid entering Gaza.

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