Israel bans access to Gaza for 37 NGOs

Israel confirmed today that it will ban access to the Gaza Strip to 37 major, international humanitarian organizations (NGOs) that have not forwarded to Israeli authorities a list of their employees’ names, as required by the new regulation.

The new rules raise concerns about further delays in getting humanitarian aid into the Palestinian territory, which has been devastated by two years of war and where the majority of residents urgently need shelter, care and food.

“Organizations that did not respect the rules regarding security and transparency will see their licenses suspended,” the Israeli Ministry of Diaspora and Combating Anti-Semitism said in a statement.

“The main identified weakness is the refusal to provide complete and verifiable data on their employees, a requirement vital to prevent terrorists from infiltrating humanitarian structures,” it added.

“The message is clear: humanitarian aid is welcome – the exploitation of humanitarian structures for terrorist purposes is not,” Minister Amihai Chikli said in the statement.

Among the NGOs that will see their licence suspended are Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), the Norwegian Refugee Council, Care, World Vision and Oxfam.