Doctors Without Borders warns of new Israeli measures threatening humanitarian work in Gaza

Doctors Without Borders warned today, Monday, that the new Israeli measures related to registering international organizations operating in the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank put humanitarian activities and healthcare at risk.

The organization stated in a press release that the newly introduced Israeli rules may deprive hundreds of thousands of people in Gaza of access to life-saving healthcare by 2026.

It explained that these requirements threaten to revoke the registration of organizations starting from the beginning of January next year, hindering the ability of independent organizations to provide their essential services amid the near-total destruction of the health system in the sector.

The statement quoted Pascal Cuttat, the emergency coordinator for the organization in Gaza, as saying that the organization's teams provided about 800,000 medical consultations during 2025 and dealt with more than 100,000 serious injury cases, emphasizing that the current humanitarian response cannot withstand "further dismantling".

Insurmountable conditions

Media reports had revealed in November last year about Israeli measures forcing organizations to provide detailed and extensive information about their Palestinian and foreign employees and their families.

The registration of these organizations has been transferred to the "Ministry of Diaspora" headed by Amichai Chikli, which now has broad powers to reject applications based on political criteria, including denying the existence of a "Jewish and democratic" state, and supporting the prosecution of Israeli citizens in international courts for war crimes.

According to the reports, the ministry has so far rejected 14 requests out of 100, while requests from major organizations like "Oxfam", "Save the Children", and the Norwegian Refugee Council have been pending for months.

Despite the ceasefire agreement in effect since October 10 last year, Israel continues to impose strict restrictions on the entry of relief and medical aid. Statistics indicate that Israel's ongoing violations of the agreement have resulted in the martyrdom of 401 Palestinians and the injury of more than 1,100 others since the truce began.