U.S. Unveils Private Aid Plan for Gaza Amid UN Concerns
US Backs Controversial Aid Scheme
As Israel’s three-month blockade fuels a humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, the United States has announced a new aid system led by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) to deliver food, water, and hygiene kits to 1.2 million Palestinians initially.
Private security contractors will protect distribution centers, with Israel securing perimeters but not handling aid, according to US Ambassador Mike Huckabee. Huckabee said:
The Israelis are going to be involved in providing necessary security because this is a war zone. But they will not be involved in the distribution of the food, or even the bringing of food into Gaza.
US Ambassador Mike Huckabee.
The plan, however, is seen as complicit in Israel’s ongoing oppression of Palestinians.
UN Condemns Plan as Unprincipled
The United Nations and aid groups have rejected the initiative, arguing it undermines humanitarian principles.
Jens Laerke, spokesman for the UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, stated, “We will not participate, only in efforts that are in line with our principles.”
He added, “There is no reason to put in place a system that is at odds with the DNA of any principled humanitarian organisation.”
Former UNRWA spokesperson Chris Gunness called it “aid-washing,” accusing Israel and allies of using aid to mask starvation and forced displacement as part of “genocidal ambitions against the Palestinians.”
The UN notes ample aid is ready at Gaza’s borders, blocked by Israel.
Gaza’s Humanitarian Collapse
Israel’s blockade since March has severed all supplies, plunging Gaza into famine-like conditions.
A third of community kitchens have closed, and flour prices have skyrocketed 30-fold.
At least 57 Palestinians, mostly children and the elderly, have starved to death.
The GHF’s plan for four distribution sites covers less than 60% of Gaza’s 2.3 million people and relies on just 60 daily aid lorries — far below the 600 delivered during a prior ceasefire — raising doubts about its ability to avert mass starvation.
Global Outcry Intensifies
UK Minister for the Middle East Hamish Falconer warned:
It is hard to see how, if implemented, the new Israeli plan to deliver aid through private companies would be consistent with humanitarian principles.
Hamish Falconer.
As Gaza endures what many call a genocide, with over 52,700 killed, the US plan’s alignment with Israel’s military agenda and its failure to meet urgent needs have sparked widespread condemnation, leaving Palestinians at risk of further suffering.