🔗 Share this article

The disputed, United States and Israel-funded Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) declares it is terminating its aid operations in the Gaza region, after almost six months.

The organisation had earlier paused its three food distribution sites in Gaza after the halt in hostilities between Palestinian factions and Israel was implemented six weeks ago.

The organization attempted to circumvent United Nations channels as the chief distributor of humanitarian assistance to Gazans.

United Nations organizations and other humanitarian groups refused to co-operate with its methodology, stating it was unethical and unsafe.

Many residents were lost their lives while seeking food amid chaotic scenes near the foundation's locations, primarily from Israeli forces, based on UN documentation.

The Israeli military claimed its forces fired alerting fire.

Operation Conclusion

The organization declared on Monday that it was concluding activities now because of the "effective conclusion of its emergency mission", with a cumulative three million shipments containing the equivalent of more than 187 million meals provided to residents.

The organization's top administrator, the foundation leader, also said the US-led Civil-Military Coordination Centre (CMCC) - which has been established to help execute US President Donald Trump's Gaza peace plan - would be "implementing and enlarging the model GHF piloted".

"GHF's model, in which Palestinian factions were unable to divert and benefit from humanitarian assistance, was significantly influential in bringing Palestinian factions to negotiations and securing a halt in hostilities."

Feedback and Statements

Hamas - which denies stealing aid - supported the shutdown of the humanitarian foundation, as indicated by media.

A spokesman for said GHF should be subject to scrutiny for the damage it inflicted to local residents.

"We urge all global human rights groups to guarantee that responsibility is assigned after resulting in fatalities and harm of thousands of Gazans and covering up the nutritional restriction approach practised by the Israeli government."

Operational Background

The foundation started work in Gaza on late May, a week after Israeli authorities had somewhat relaxed a total blockade on relief and commercial goods to Gaza that continued for 77 days and led to substantial deficiencies of vital resources.

Subsequently, a famine was declared in the Gaza metropolitan area.

The organization's sustenance provision locations in the southern and middle regions of Gaza were administered by American private security firms and situated within Israeli military zones.

Aid Organization Objections

United Nations agencies and their collaborators claimed the approach contravened the basic relief guidelines of non-partisanship, even-handedness and self-determination, and that directing needy individuals into militarised zones was fundamentally dangerous.

United Nations human rights division said it recorded the killing of at least 859 Palestinians trying to acquire sustenance in the proximity to foundation locations between spring and summer months.

An additional 514 individuals were killed near the courses followed by international humanitarian deliveries, it also mentioned.

The greater part of these people were lost their lives due to the Israeli military, as per the organization's documentation.

Conflicting Accounts

Israel's armed services said its forces had fired warning shots at people who approached them in a "intimidating" way.

The GHF said there were no firearm incidents at the aid sites and claimed the international organization of using "inaccurate and deceptive" data from Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry.

Future Implications

The foundation's prospects had been unclear since Palestinian factions and Israeli authorities consented a ceasefire deal to carry out the primary segment of the American administration's peace initiative.

The agreement stated aid distribution would take place "free from intervention from the two parties through the international bodies and their affiliates, and the humanitarian medical organization, in conjunction with other global organizations not connected in any way" with militant groups and the Israeli government.

UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric declared this week that the organization's termination would have "no influence" on its work "because we never worked with them".

He also said that while more aid was getting into Gaza since the truce was implemented on October 10th, it was "not enough to address all necessities" of the 2.1 million population.