Eurasia Press & News
An Israel-backed NGO began distributing aid in southern Gaza on Tuesday, following weeks of delays and mounting criticism.
The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) handed out food parcels in the Tel al-Sultan area west of Rafah under a new Israeli-run system that bypasses UN agencies, drawing sharp condemnation from Palestinian officials and aid groups.
Ismail Al-Thawabta, director of Gaza’s Media Office, dismissed Israeli-released images of aid trucks entering Rafah as “fabricated and misleading”, while local journalists and aid workers said they had seen no evidence of distributions on the ground earlier in the day.
The initiative has faced widespread backlash, with accusations that it is part of an Israeli strategy to control Palestinian civilians through hunger and surveillance.
Later in the day, eyewitnesses and footage shared online showed hundreds of people gathering at the designated aid site, established in coordination with the Israeli military.
According to COGAT, Israel’s military agency overseeing aid transfers, four such centres have been set up across southern Gaza in recent weeks.
Tuesday’s parcels reportedly included canned beans, sugar, pasta, cooking oil, flour, and rice, in quantities locals described as insufficient for families enduring extreme hunger under Israel’s nearly three-month-long siege.
The criteria for selecting recipients remain unclear. People from the west of Khan Younis and Rafah were seen heading to the site via a pre-approved route. Local sources said the gate was heavily secured, requiring iris scans from those receiving aid.
Several young Palestinian men were detained on their way to collect aid, reinforcing earlier warnings that these sites could become traps for arrests.
Gaza’s Interior Ministry accused Israel of using the aid mechanism to sideline the UN and other recognised agencies, calling it a deliberate attempt to sow chaos and weaponise access to food.
“After more than 85 days of deliberate starvation and the closure of all border crossings, Israel now seeks to control humanitarian aid through a shady new body tailored to its security agenda,” the ministry said.
“This is not humanitarian relief but a calculated plan to force displacement and blackmail Palestinians for intelligence.”
The ministry also said access to food was being conditioned on “clean” security records, in the aftermath of forced displacement.
The GHF, reportedly conceived in late 2023 by Israeli businessmen and ex-military officers, is now under interim director John Acree following the resignation of CEO Jake Wood, who stepped down before distributions began, citing concerns that the plan compromised the organisation’s independence.
The foundation says more trucks are expected in the coming days, but their legitimacy remains contested. A New York Times investigation found that GHF was designed to bypass UN agencies and deliver aid only within Israeli-controlled areas, blurring the line between humanitarian work and military objectives.
Several Western allies of Israel have slammed it for its months-long siege of Gaza and the bleak humanitarian situation in the territory, with some countries calling for sanctions.
Meanwhile, as famine deepens in Gaza and the humanitarian situation worsens, Egypt said it was intensifying efforts to revive ceasefire talks. An Egyptian official told Al-Qahera news channel that coordination with Qatar and the US is ongoing, following Hamas’ reported approval of a US proposal involving a 70-day truce and captive-prisoner exchanges.
On Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu walked back earlier comments suggesting a deal could be imminent.
“If not today, then tomorrow. And if not tomorrow, then the day after,” he said, vowing to return the remaining captives held in Gaza, even as the military campaign continues, killing over 3,000 Palestinians since 18 March alone.
