The Gaza Aid Debacle

After an 80-day total blockade of humanitarian aid into Gaza, a new scheme to distribute food to desperate Gazans began operations this week. The “Gaza Humanitarian Foundation” is an Israeli-American creation, designed by consultants, backed by American security contractors, and headed by an evangelical Christian supporter of Donald Trump who has little experience in humanitarian aid. They have set up four aid distribution sites, mostly in remote locations in southern Gaza, where thousands of Gazans have scrambled to access the limited food that Israel is permitting into the territory.

Independent humanitarian agencies and the United Nations are not participating in this scheme because it is clearly designed to advance Israeli political and military aims, rather than meet Gazans’ increasingly desperate humanitarian needs. Ciarán Donnelly, Senior Vice President for international programs at the International Rescue Committee, explains why this aid scheme is deeply flawed, what we know about this “Gaza Humanitarian Foundation,” and what needs to be done to get food and aid to people in Gaza before a widespread famine takes hold.