A new aid initiative, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), backed by the United States and Israel, launched operations in southern Gaza on Tuesday, distributing food boxes to Palestinians.
The Switzerland-registered group, operating under armed security contractors, has established four distribution hubs in the region.
However, the plan has drawn sharp criticism from the United Nations and aid agencies, who refuse to cooperate, citing risks of aid being used as a political tool.
The UN’s Jens Laerke called the deliveries “a distraction from what is actually needed,” urging Israel to reopen crossings and approve emergency supplies waiting at Gaza’s borders.
Between May 15 and 25, 180,000 Palestinians were displaced, according to the UN’s International Organization for Migration, adding to the 616,000 displaced since the Gaza ceasefire collapsed on March 18.
The Gaza Ministry of Health reports over 54,000 deaths in the ongoing conflict.
The Global Camp Coordination and Camp Management Cluster condemned intensified Israeli attacks on displacement sites, including tents in al-Mawasi and a school-turned-shelter in Gaza City, stating, “These sites serve to protect displaced civilians, in line with the enduring obligation under international humanitarian law.”
The GHF’s operations, which may use facial recognition or biometric technology to screen for Hamas affiliations, have raised alarms.
Al Jazeera’s Tareq Abu Azzoum, reporting from Deir el-Balah, said:
Only those who move southwards will get aid. People will be forced to travel long distances under very dangerous security circumstances in order to get parcels that will be enough for a few days.Tareq Abu Azzoum.
Former UNRWA spokesperson Chris Gunness labeled the scheme “aid washing,” warning:
It’s quite simply the use of humanitarian aid to justify the weaponisation of humanitarian assistance, but also to justify ethnic cleansing and genocide.Chris Gunness.
Global condemnation has intensified, with EU chief Ursula von der Leyen calling Israel’s strikes on civilian facilities “abhorrent.”
Germany, Finland, and Sweden have urged pressure on Israel to allow aid, while France, the UK, and Canada threaten “concrete actions” if the offensive and aid restrictions persist.
Meanwhile, Israel’s far-right minister Itamar Ben-Gvir declared, “We must not give them humanitarian aid. Our enemies deserve only a bullet to the head,” during a controversial Jerusalem Day march.
As the crisis escalates, the GHF’s operations remain a focal point of debate, with unclear plans for aiding central and northern Gaza’s scattered population.