Silas Gaughran-Bedell
The U.N. rights office said on Tuesday that it had recorded 875 killings at or near aid distribution centers in the past six weeks since the Gaza Humanitarian Fund (GHF), a U.S. and Israeli-backed NGO, took over aid distribution in Gaza. IDF soldier testimonies have confirmed that aid seekers are being deliberately targeted. Despite this, in late June, the U.S. state department rushed to approve $30 million in funding for the NGO, waiving nine mandatory counterterrorism and anti-fraud safeguards while overriding 58 objections from USAID staff, an internal memorandum reviewed by Reuters revealed.
The memorandum, first obtained by CNN, shows that USAID officials have raised concerns about the plan missing “even basic details” and a proposal to distribute baby powder formula in an area without proper clean water to prepare it. Despite a slew of objections to the proposal, Jeremy Lewin, the head of the State Department’s foreign aid program, approved the proposal just 5 days after receiving it.
GHF has been shrouded in secrecy since taking over aid distribution in Gaza after Israeli allegations that the U.N.-led system let Hamas-led militants loot aid shipments intended for civilians, an allegation Hamas has denied. GHF was selected by Roman Gofman, Military Secretary to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, with the IDF and the Defense Ministry being excluded from the selection process. Its approval bypassed typical government channels like the Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), the organization in charge of aid distribution in Gaza before GHF.
GHF’s original executive chairman was Jake Wood, a former marine, who resigned in late May, saying that the organization could not complete its mission and adhere to “humanitarian principles,” nor could he guarantee GHF’s independence from Israeli interests. Wood was replaced by Johnnie Moore, an evangelical leader and advisor to President Trump on interfaith issues.
What has ensued in Gaza since the GHF has taken over has been described by soldiers as ‘a killing field.” A Haaretz exposé revealed that commanders have ordered troops to shoot into crowds with thousands of starving civilians in order to disperse them, no matter if they pose a threat. The centers are only open for one hour each morning, with gunfire being used by IDF soldiers against aid-seekers who arrive early to indicate they should not approach, and after the centers close, to disperse crowds.
In an interview with Haaretz, a soldier revealed, “We open fire early in the morning if someone tries to get in line from a few hundred meters away, and sometimes we just charge at them from close range. But there’s no danger to the forces.” He added, “I’m not aware of a single instance of return fire. There’s no enemy, no weapons.”
In contrast to GHF, UNRWA, the group that has long provided aid to Palestinians from a vast network of schools, health centers, and distribution centers, while GHF only runs four militarized distribution centers, inviting large crowds of starving Palestinians as famine in Gaza looms large.
The GHF began distribution after an 11-week blockade on all aid entering Gaza. After 10 weeks of the blockade, U.N. Relief Chief, Tom Fletcher, stated that the entire population of Gaza was at risk of famine, and one-in-five Gazans were at risk of starvation. The reintroduction of aid was initially welcomed by Fletcher, but described as “a drop in the ocean of what is urgently needed.” Now, six weeks removed, the aid distribution has been devastating, and recently leaked proposals reveal the Trump administration’s plans for Gaza could further endanger the vulnerable population.
A proposal obtained by Reuters and linked to GHF outlines the creation of large camps called “Humanitarian Transit Areas” (HTAs) to house displaced Palestinians inside and potentially outside of Gaza. In the camps, Palestinians would undergo “deradicalization” and reintegration. The $2 billion plan has drawn immense criticism, inciting fears of forced displacement under the guise of voluntary relocation. The documents, reviewed by Reuters, bore GHF’s name and Safe Reach Solutions (the company that is in charge of security for GHF), but GHF denied authorship, claiming it was a theoretical exercise and not an official submission.
The GHF is headquartered in Delaware but was also registered as an affiliate in Switzerland until early July, when Swiss authorities launched proceedings over legal violations such as not having a postal address or a Swiss bank account, leading to the group announcing the shutdown of its Geneva branch. Also in early July, the U.N. and 170 charities called for the end of GHF and accused the group of firing on aid-seekers. Despite public condemnation of GHF operations the death toll around distribution centers continues to rise with at least 34 aid-seekers being killed waiting for food rations in southern Rafah on Saturday. The incident reflects the continued weaponization of access to humanitarian aid whether through blockades or violence at distribution centers.
Silas Gaughran-Bedell is a summer intern at The Jerusalem Fund & Palestine Center and the author of this article.
