Aid Groups Demand End to Weaponization of Gaza Relief

More than 100 aid groups warn that Israel's aid rules could block relief and endanger staff while the Gaza crisis worsens.

Aid Groups Demand End to Weaponization of Gaza Relief

More than 100 nonprofit groups including Oxfam, Doctors Without Borders and CARE sent a letter on Thursday accusing Israel of weaponizing aid by forcing donor transparency rules and staff lists for vetting. They say the measures could endanger staff and allow aid to be blocked for political reasons. The groups note that they have not delivered a single truck of relief since the March blockade and call on donors to pressure Israel to revert to neutral relief channels. Israel’s COGAT countered that 380 trucks entered Gaza on Wednesday and that six countries aided with food deliveries the next day.

In parallel, hospitals report more casualties from Israeli airstrikes and an expanding toll from malnutrition as dehydration rises in Gaza during a heatwave. In the West Bank, a new settlement expansion plan by Bezalel Smotrich sparks warnings that the move could fracture the territory and threaten prospects for a two state solution. The Gaza Health Ministry says the death toll has surpassed 61,700 Palestinians, with about half of the victims women and children, and the malnutrition death toll rising to 239, including 106 children. Evacuations by some European countries continue but the overall aid flow remains far below prewar levels.

The episode shows how humanitarian relief is getting pulled into politics at multiple levels. Aid groups frame routine security checks as a risk to staff and a tool to undermine independent relief work, while Israel frames the checks as essential to prevent Hamas involvement. The clash raises questions about how neutral relief can survive in a conflict where control of borders, aid routes and who gets aid are strategic assets.

Beyond the immediate aid dispute, the new settlement plan in the West Bank is a reminder that humanitarian concerns and territorial politics are increasingly entangled. Donors and international bodies will weigh how to respond without emboldening hardline positions, and how to preserve a path to a viable peace process in a landscape where such plans already undermine trust.

Highlights

The coming weeks will test whether relief can stay insulated from the political clash.