In a statement issued Friday, Doctors Without Borders described the aid distribution plan implemented by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation as "deadly," noting that it has killed more than 500 Palestinians and injured nearly 4,000 others while trying to obtain food, describing it as "genocide under the guise of humanitarian aid."
The organization said that the plan, which began implementation on May 27, forces Palestinians to choose between starving to death and risking their lives in distribution areas under complete Israeli control, where they are shot when trying to access aid.
The organization's emergency coordinator in Gaza, Aitor Zabalgogiasqua, said that Palestinians in Gaza are being directed to four distribution points in areas completely under Israeli control. He added, "Gaza Humanitarian Foundation workers are leaving food boxes and opening the fence, allowing thousands of people to enter at once and fight for the last grain of rice."
He added, "If people arrive early and approach the checkpoints, they are shot. If they arrive on time, there is a surge and they jump over the fence, they are shot."
MSF called for an immediate end to this plan, the lifting of the Israeli blockade on food, fuel, medical supplies, and humanitarian aid, and a return to the previous aid mechanism, which was managed in coordination with the United Nations.
Far from the oversight of the United Nations and international organizations, Tel Aviv and Washington began implementing a plan on May 27 to distribute limited aid through the so-called "Gaza Humanitarian Foundation," forcing starving Palestinians to choose between death by starvation or being shot by the Israeli army.
For its part, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) called for the immediate lifting of the Israeli blockade to ensure the continuation of its relief operations, warning that the continued closure threatens its ability to provide vital services to millions of Palestinians.
UNRWA confirmed that it has not stopped operating since the outbreak of the war on October 7, 2023, despite the bombing and displacement. However, it faces increasing difficulties amid deteriorating conditions, particularly with the depletion of baby formula and the collapse of the health system in Gaza.
The agency reported that Israel's systematic starvation policy, implemented since last March, has plunged the Gaza Strip into a state of true famine, resulting in the deaths of hundreds, including infants and the elderly.
Since March 2, Israel has continued its policy of systematically starving approximately 2.4 million Palestinians in Gaza by closing the crossings to aid supplies piling up at the border, plunging the Strip into famine and claiming many lives.
On June 19, two hospitals in Gaza warned of an imminent "health disaster" threatening the lives of infants due to the depletion of baby formula amid the ongoing blockade and war.
Gaza's health system is suffering from a complete collapse due to Israel's deliberate targeting of the remaining functioning hospitals and health centers in the Strip, and the denial of entry of medicines, medical supplies, and equipment.
Since October 7, 2023, Israel, with American support, has been committing genocide in Gaza, including killing, starvation, destruction, and forced displacement, ignoring all international calls and orders from the International Court of Justice to halt it.
The genocide left approximately 189,000 Palestinians dead or wounded, most of them children and women, and more than 11,000 missing. Hundreds of thousands were displaced, and a famine claimed the lives of many, including children.
