Overview
- Licenses for 37 NGOs operating in Gaza and parts of the West Bank were revoked on January 1, and foreign staff have been told to leave by March 1.
- Israel says the organizations failed to meet a March 2025 registration regime that requires full disclosure of staff, funding and operations, including Palestinian employees.
- The banned list includes major groups such as Médecins Sans Frontières, the Norwegian Refugee Council, CARE International, the International Rescue Committee, Oxfam and Caritas, spanning 16 countries.
- MSF rejects Israeli allegations about staff links to militant groups and warns a forced exit would be devastating, noting it supports roughly 20% of Gaza’s hospital beds and about one in three births.
- COGAT argues the affected NGOs account for about 1% of total aid and says assistance will continue, while UN officials, the EU and several governments condemn the suspensions as arbitrary and dangerous.