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A major Christian charity is among ten international NGOs whose permits to deliver humanitarian aid in Gaza have been revoked by Israel, as human rights organisations accuse the occupation state of ‘weaponising’ access to food and medicine during what experts say is a genocidal assault on the besieged enclave.

Catholic Relief Services, a US-based Christian aid agency with decades of experience operating in conflict zones, was stripped of its authorisation under new Israeli regulations targeting international NGOs that support Palestinians. The announcement, issued by Israel’s Ministry of Diaspora Affairs, follows the introduction of sweeping laws in March that enable the government to revoke the permits of groups accused—often without evidence—of “delegitimising” Israel or associating with banned organisations.

Two other groups named were Rahma Worldwide, also US-based, and Gaza Direct Aid, described by the ministry as a one-person operation run by a Palestinian activist. Israeli officials claimed Rahma has ties to the Society of the Revival of Islamic Heritage—an allegation Rahma has not been formally confronted with—while Gaza Direct Aid was targeted for allegedly using “inflammatory” social media language that denied Israel’s right to exist.

Several aid officials, speaking anonymously to Haaretz, expressed disbelief at the news, saying they had not been informed of the revocation of their permit and dismissed the ministry’s claims as unsubstantiated. “Rahma is one of the few organisations still able to bring in goods since the March siege,” said one official, who added that the group maintained a positive working relationship with the Israeli military body overseeing aid to Gaza.

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Another international NGO official said they were highly sceptical of the move, noting that none of their colleagues had mentioned such delistings. “It feels more like a political message than an operational reality,” they said.

Under the regulations introduced in December, international NGOs must submit detailed documentation, including sensitive donor information and personal data about Palestinian staff. Groups that fail to comply risk having their permits denied or revoked. Several organisations have refused to share such information, citing legal restrictions in their home countries and ethical concerns over allowing one party to the conflict to vet their personnel.

Rights groups warned that these measures are part of a broader strategy by the Israeli government to obstruct independent humanitarian operations in Gaza and control the flow of aid as part of its ethnic cleansing strategy.

That concern was echoed today in a joint statement from more than 100 international NGOs, including, CARE, Doctors Without Borders and Oxfam, accusing Israel of “weaponising” humanitarian aid and deliberately blocking relief operations to inflict collective punishment on the civilian population.

“Since the full siege was imposed on 2 March, CARE has not been able to deliver any of our $1.5 million worth of pre-positioned supplies into Gaza,” said CARE’s country director Jolien Veldwijk. Oxfam stated it has $2.5 million in blocked aid stuck in warehouses, with dozens of delivery requests rejected by Israeli authorities on the grounds that the organisations were “not authorised.”

The statement revealed that in July alone, over 60 requests to deliver aid were denied, despite Israeli claims that there are no restrictions. Millions of dollars’ worth of essential supplies remain stranded in Jordan and Egypt as Gaza hospitals run out of medicine and children die from starvation.

Aid agencies say the revocations stem from vague and politically motivated criteria introduced in March, which allow Israel to reject applications based on perceived criticism or supposed links to banned entities. Officials say the process is being used to suppress independent reporting and silence groups critical of Israeli conduct.

As of this month, most of the 100 international NGOs that applied for registration were still awaiting final decisions, with delistings expected to rise. Some groups opted not to apply at all, fearing rejection or refusing to participate in what they described as an illegitimate vetting process.

Humanitarian organisations have warned that these measures are part of a broader strategy by the Israeli government to obstruct independent aid distribution in Gaza and control the flow of aid as part of its war effort.

Israel has also come under fire for militarising aid distribution by dismantling the UN-led humanitarian delivery network and replacing it with the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a system run jointly with US and Israeli military officials. Human rights groups and UN agencies have condemned the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation as an instrument of Israeli military control, accusing it of turning aid distribution sites into death traps. 

Dozens of starving Palestinians have been killed by Israeli snipers while attempting to reach GHF distribution centres, where aid is now limited to a handful of heavily militarised locations. Observers warn that this model treats aid as a tool of control rather than relief.

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This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.