Israel Bans 37 Aid Groups in Gaza and Occupied West Bank; UN Chief Guterres Demands Reversal

Israeli authorities announced they will revoke the licences of 37 international humanitarian organisations operating in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, naming groups such as Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), the Norwegian Refugee Council, CARE and the International Rescue Committee.

“That sentence defines the term "last mile" in humanitarian operations: it refers to the front-line personnel who physically deliver aid to the people affected”

Al Jazeera

Israel says the move follows new registration rules requiring detailed disclosures about staff, funding and operations and plans to enforce bans with deadlines in early 2026.

Al Jazeera

Several outlets report the ban's effective enforcement dates differently but consistently list the same core groups and the requirement to disclose Palestinian staff and operational details.

The Israeli government frames the action as a security and regulatory measure intended to prevent militant infiltration.

NGOs say the rules are unlawful, unsafe and would force them to stop critical services.

Israel and its supporters say the new registration regime is justified by national security and transparency, requiring identification of Palestinian staff and disclosure of funding.

Israeli statements and outlets sympathetic to the government have repeated accusations that some NGO staff have links to militants.

Al Jazeera

NGOs and rights bodies say those allegations are unproven and dangerous.

NGOs including MSF have rejected demands to hand over staff lists as unlawful and unsafe, arguing the requirement undermines humanitarian neutrality and places local staff at risk.

UN chief António Guterres and other international officials have publicly demanded that Israel reverse the ban, warning it would undermine lifesaving operations and the fragile progress of ceasefire arrangements.

“Despite the ceasefire, Israeli oppression continued in Gaza, at least 418 have been killed and 1,171 injured since the Trump-brokered ceasefire in Gaza,Wafa News Agencyreported, adding that at least 684 bodies have also been recovered”

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Guterres said the NGOs' work is 'indispensable to life-saving humanitarian work' and cautioned that suspending them could 'undermine the fragile progress made during the ceasefire.'

UN human-rights chief Volker Türk called the move 'outrageous.'

A group of ten foreign ministers also urged Israel to guarantee continued aid access.

Humanitarian organisations and multiple media outlets warn the ban will devastate Gaza’s battered health, water and food systems.

International NGOs deliver nearly $1 billion annually to the occupied Palestinian territory.

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MSF reports it provided hundreds of thousands of consultations and trauma treatments in 2025.

Aid levels remain far below agreed ceasefire targets, with only roughly 100-300 trucks entering daily compared with a 600-truck target.

Reports highlight the high human cost already borne by aid workers, with hundreds killed during the war.

Analysts predict the ban will cut hundreds of thousands of Palestinians off essential care, worsening winter exposure, malnutrition and risks to children.