Israel will expel Doctors Without Borders and 36 other NGOs from Gaza
The organizations have refused to release the names of their local staff to protect them.
BarcelonaIn violation of international humanitarian law, Israel announced on Tuesday that it will expel Doctors Without Borders (MSF) and 36 other international humanitarian aid NGOs, including Oxfam and ActionAid, from Gaza. The government of Benjamin Netanyahu claims that the organizations refused to hand over the registration of their local staff in the Strip to protect them from further reprisals, following the systematic killing of Palestinian healthcare, emergency, and aid distribution workers. Tel Aviv introduced the new registration system for international NGOs in March 2025, and it was criticized at the time by the UN, which denounced it as being based on "unfair, arbitrary, and highly politicized criteria" that humanitarian organizations could not meet without violating fundamental rights. In addition to requiring identification for all its workers, Israel established as grounds for denying permission to operate in the Palestinian territories denying Israel's existence as a Jewish and democratic state, promoting campaigns to delegitimize the state, inciting boycotts, or supporting the prosecution of Israeli security forces.
The Ministry of Diaspora Affairs, designated by a government resolution to lead the registration process, argues that the new regulations are necessary due to what it claims the security services have found: that some NGO workers have been involved in "terrorist activities." The agency cites two employees who worked for Doctors Without Borders (MSF). Israel also alleged unproven terrorist links for prohibiting the activities of UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, for bombing hospitals, and for killing journalists. The agency responded with a statement clarifying that it "would never hire people knowing they participate in military activities," which would pose a danger to its staff and patients. "Making these accusations public without substantiated evidence endangers humanitarian personnel and undermines lifesaving medical work," it warns.
The new regulations for registering international NGOs also require them to detail "sources of funding and operational structures." Licenses will be revoked starting this Thursday, January 1, 2026, and organizations will have to evacuate their staff from the Gaza Strip by March 1.
Half a million affected
MSF is one of the leading medical organizations currently operating in Gaza and points out that "with a health system in Gaza virtually destroyed, the loss of access for independent humanitarian organizations with experience on the ground is a disaster for the Palestinian population." The organization notes that humanitarian aid to Gaza "is already severely restricted and cannot be dismantled further." Although not its specialty, the medical organization has distributed more than 700 million liters of water to the population of the Strip. It currently supports six public hospitals and operates two field hospitals in Gaza. It also reinforces four general healthcare centers and runs a hospitalization center for the treatment of malnutrition. Recently, MSF opened six new medical posts offering wound care and other basic health services. Therefore, they argue, the Israeli veto on their activities in Gaza will leave some half a million Palestinians in the Strip without access to critical medical care, water, and life support. The organization has been working in the occupied Palestinian territories since 1989.
