Israeli plan to isolate Gaza legally: Cancellation of registration of 37 international organizations and prevention of foreign witnesses

The Israeli occupation government continues to impose severe restrictions on the work of international humanitarian organizations in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, through a strategy aimed at isolating the occupied territories from international oversight. These moves come in the context of preventing the entry of foreign figures who criticize Israeli policies, to ensure that there are no neutral witnesses to convey the reality of the field conditions and the violations committed against Palestinians to the international community.

Human rights activist Lee Caspi, from Physicians for Human Rights, revealed an official decision to cancel the registration of 37 international organizations that provide vital aid and manage development projects in the Palestinian territories. She explained that this decision was taken by a joint ministerial committee established last year, headed by the Ministry of Diaspora Affairs, following legal amendments targeting the entry and residency conditions for foreigners.

New procedures require international organizations to re-register according to complex security standards, including a comprehensive review of their public data and the provision of detailed personal information about all their Palestinian employees. Observers believe that these conditions place humanitarian workers under direct security prosecution, threatening the continuity of humanitarian work in affected areas.

Data indicates that this tightening comes after heavy losses in humanitarian personnel, as about 1,700 medical and relief workers were killed during the recent aggression on the Gaza Strip. Major organizations such as 'Doctors Without Borders' tried to reach understandings that would ensure the use of their employees' data for administrative purposes only, but the Israeli ministerial committee refused to cooperate with these demands.

The seriousness of canceling registration is evident in preventing the entry of specialized foreign personnel, leading to a paralysis in the provision of basic medical and social services in Gaza and the West Bank. Figures confirm that 'Doctors Without Borders' alone provided about 800,000 medical consultations in Gaza during 2025, and supervised one-third of births in the Strip, making its absence a real health catastrophe.

In a related context, the decision affected 'Save the Children' organization, which has provided relief services to more than 812,000 Palestinian children since October 2023, including providing newborn supplies and basic health needs. Depriving these organizations of their legal status means stopping the flow of in-kind and financial aid on which hundreds of thousands of displaced and wounded depend.

Israeli immigration authorities have already begun implementing a pre-emptive ban policy, prohibiting the entry of representatives of four international organizations that support local human rights institutions active in exposing occupation violations. This move aims to cut off any cooperation between Israeli non-governmental organizations opposing the occupation and donor or international oversight bodies.

Minister of Diaspora Affairs, Amichai Chikli, openly declared this policy on social media platforms, boasting about preventing a delegation from 'Eyewitnesses Palestine' organization from entering. Chikli confirmed clear directives to prevent any representative of an international organization that adopts positions classified by Israel as 'hostile,' in a step that entrenches the policy of silencing international voices.

The persecution is not limited to relief organizations but extends to academics and UN special rapporteurs, as legal amendments dating back to 2017 are activated, allowing the prevention of entry of anyone who calls for a boycott. These laws were previously used to deport Omar Shakir, the director of the Palestine and Israel division at Human Rights Watch, as part of a comprehensive campaign against human rights defenders.

On the media front, Israel imposes a complete blackout through the 'Al Jazeera Law' approved in 2024, which grants authorities the power to close press offices and prevent broadcasting. Foreign journalists are also prevented from entering the Gaza Strip independently and are forced to participate in limited military tours under the supervision of the occupation army to ensure the direction of the media narrative.

This systematic blackout aims to confine the narrative to what only Palestinian victims convey, who face harsh conditions of hunger and displacement that weaken their ability to communicate with the world. In parallel, Israel continues to classify long-standing Palestinian human rights organizations as 'terrorist' organizations, despite international intelligence confirmations of no evidence to support these claims.

The remaining human rights organizations within the occupied territories face enormous financial pressures, as the 'Registrar of Organizations' has begun opening administrative and financial investigations against them for unknown reasons. These investigations coincide with proposed laws seeking to impose exorbitant taxes on foreign donations, with the aim of drying up the financial sources that ensure the continuity of these associations' activities.

These accelerating measures indicate an Israeli desire to liquidate the international and local human rights presence in Palestine, and to turn the Strip and the West Bank into closed areas far from legal accountability. Experts believe that the absence of international witnesses will give the occupation authorities a green light to escalate repression and displacement operations without fear of international criminal prosecution.

In conclusion, there is concern that organizations opposing the occupation will be the next victim on Israel's targeting list, under a banking and legal system that constantly tightens its grip on them. The remaining time to save what is left of the humanitarian and human rights work structure is dwindling, requiring urgent international intervention to stop these retaliatory policies.

The knockout blow came with the decision to cancel the registration of 37 international organizations managing vital projects in the West Bank and Gaza, in an attempt to remove neutral witnesses to the occupation's crimes.