Israel will bar 37 NGOs from Gaza for failing to provide staff lists, a move the EU warns will block life-saving aid to Palestinians.
JERUSALEM: Israel will ban 37 international aid organisations from operating in Gaza starting on Thursday.
The ban applies to groups that have not complied with new guidelines requiring detailed information on their Palestinian staff.
“They refuse to provide lists of their Palestinian employees because they know, just as we know, that some of them are involved in terrorism or linked to Hamas,” said Gilad Zwick, spokesman for the Ministry of Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism.
The deadline for NGOs to submit the information expired at midnight on Wednesday.
Zwick expressed doubt that groups would comply at the last minute.
He stated Israel would not accept “any cooperation that is just for show, simply to get an extension.”
The ministry said the move was part of a decision to “strengthen and update” regulations for international NGOs in the Palestinian territory.
Israel has specifically accused medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) of having two employees who were members of Islamic Jihad and Hamas.
Other major NGOs on the list include the Norwegian Refugee Council, World Vision International, CARE and Oxfam.
Several aid groups have warned the new rules will severely impact aid distribution in Gaza, where humanitarian needs remain acute.
The European Union warned the decision would block “life-saving” assistance.
“The EU has been clear: the NGO registration law cannot be implemented in its current form,” EU humanitarian chief Hadja Lahbib posted on social media.
She added that “IHL (international humanitarian law) leaves no room for doubt: aid must reach those in need.” While a ceasefire deal stipulated the entry of 600 aid trucks per day, NGOs and the UN report only 100 to 300 are arriving.
The Israeli defence ministry body COGAT said last week that an average of 4,200 aid trucks enter Gaza weekly, which corresponds to around 600 daily.
