‘This is not a humanitarian response,’ say 130 NGOs calling for UN to take over distribution of humanitarian aid.
More than 130 humanitarian organisations, including Oxfam, Save the Children and Amnesty International, have demanded the immediate closure of the Israeli- and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), accusing it of facilitating attacks on starving Palestinians.
In a joint statement released on Tuesday, the NGOs said Israeli forces and armed groups “routinely” open fire on civilians attempting to access food.
Since the GHF began operations in late May, more than 500 Palestinians have been killed while seeking aid, and nearly 4,000 wounded, the groups reported.
They condemned the aid mechanism as a violation of humanitarian norms, accusing it of funnelling Gaza’s 2.2 million residents into overcrowded, militarised distribution zones, where they are exposed to near-daily gunfire.
“Palestinians in Gaza face an impossible choice: starve or risk being shot while trying desperately to reach food to feed their families,” the statement said. “Orphaned children and caregivers are among the dead, with children harmed in over half of the attacks on civilians at these sites.”
Since its launch, the GHF has replaced more than 400 localised distribution points – which had functioned during a brief ceasefire – with only four centralised sites under Israeli military control: Three in Gaza’s southwest and one in the centre.
“Amidst severe hunger and famine-like conditions, many families tell us they are now too weak to compete for food rations,” the NGOs said, insisting that GHF “is not a humanitarian response”.
Speaking to media from Gaza City, Palestinian civil society leader Amjad Shawa said the aid mechanism is not providing sufficient supplies for hungry families, and also pressures people to move towards southern Gaza.
UN agencies and humanitarian leaders have repeatedly criticised the GHF model. Last week, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres labelled it “inherently unsafe”.
Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported on Friday that Israeli soldiers had been ordered to shoot at unarmed Palestinians near aid sites to disperse them.
media’s Tareq Abu Azzoum, reporting from Deir el-Balah, said there has been no letup in attacks on aid seekers, with the “Israeli military opening fire on hungry crowds trying to approach aid supplies from the GHF, killing at least 16” people on Tuesday. The aid seekers were among at least 44 people killed in Israeli attacks across Gaza on Tuesday, medical sources told media.
The condemnation comes as Israeli officials, including Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, arrive in Washington, DC for renewed ceasefire talks. Mediator Qatar confirmed ongoing efforts to revive negotiations, but noted that progress was slow.
“There’s a momentum created by the Iran-Israel ceasefire,” said Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majed al-Ansari, “but the main obstacle is that both parties are not returning to the table.”
‘Israeli agenda’
Israel’s military chief said last week that its ground operation was nearing its objectives, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed new opportunities had emerged to recover captives held by Palestinian groups – 20 of whom are believed to still be alive.
Meanwhile, senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan said on Monday that there had been no contact from Israel for weeks. “We are determined to seek a ceasefire that will save our people, and we are working with mediators to open the crossings,” he said.
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