Oxfam and 240 other NGOs call for immediate action to end the deadly Israeli distribution scheme (including the so-called Gaza Humanitarian Foundation) in Gaza, revert to the existing UN-led coordination mechanisms, and lift the Israeli government’s blockade on aid and commercial supplies.

Current Crisis: A Deadly Choice

• Today, Palestinians in Gaza face an impossible choice: starve or risk being shot while trying desperately to reach food to feed their families. The 400 aid distribution points operating during the temporary ceasefire across Gaza have now been replaced by just four military-controlled distribution sites, forcing two million people into overcrowded, militarized zones. There, they face daily gunfire and mass casualties while trying to access food and are denied other life-saving supplies. The weeks following the launch of the Israeli distribution scheme have been some of the deadliest and most violent since October 2023.
• In less than four weeks, over 500 Palestinians have been killed and nearly 4,000 injured while trying to access or distribute food.
• Israeli forces and armed groups - some reportedly operating with backing from Israeli authorities - now routinely open fire on desperate civilians risking everything to survive.

Israel’s Policies: Dismantling Humanitarian Aid

The humanitarian system is being deliberately dismantled by the Government of Israel’s blockade and restrictions, which justify shutting down nearly all aid operations in favour of a deadly, military-controlled alternative that fails protects civilians or meet basic needs. This sustains a cycle of desperation, danger, and death.

• Militarized Chaos: Starved and weakened civilians  must  trek for hours through dangerous conflict zones to reach fenced, militarized distribution sites with a single entry point where thousands scramble for limited food supplies.
• Massacres and Violations: These sites have become scenes of repeated massacres in blatant disregard for international humanitarian law. Orphaned children and caregivers are among the dead, with children harmed in over half of the attacks. With Gaza’s healthcare system collapsed, many shots are left to bleed out , beyond the reach of ambulances or medical care.
• Unmet Needs: Amid severe hunger and famine-like conditions, families are too weak to compete for rations. Those who obtain food receive minimal items, nearly impossible to prepare without clean water or fuel. Fuel shortages have halted bakeries, water systems, ambulances, and hospitals. Families shelter under plastic sheets in rubble, lacking fuel, clean water, sanitation, or electricity.

This Is Not a Humanitarian Response.

Concentrating more than two million people into confined areas to compete for food is not a plan to save lives. For 20 months, Gaza’s population has endured relentless bombardment, the weaponization of food, water and aid, repeated forced displacement, and systematic dehumanization - all under the watch of the international community. The Sphere Association, which sets humanitarian standards, warns that the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation's approach violates core humanitarian principles.

Our Demands

This normalization of suffering must end. States must reject the false choice between deadly, military-controlled food distributions and total denial of aid. We, the undersigned organizations, call on all third states to:

• End the Siege: Take concrete measures to end the suffocating siege and uphold the right of civilians in Gaza to safely access aid and protection.
• Reject Militarized Aid: Urge donors stop funding aid schemes that violate international law, ignore humanitarian principles, deepen harm, and risk complicity in atrocities.
• Restore UN-Led Aid: Support a unified, UN-led coordination mechanism—grounded in international humanitarian law and inclusive of UNRWA, Palestinian civil society, and the wider humanitarian community—to meet people’s needs.
• Ceasefire Now: Demand an immediate and sustained ceasefire, the release of all hostages and arbitrarily detained prisoners, full humanitarian access, and an end to the impunity enabling these atrocities and denying Palestinians their dignity.

Join Us to Save Gaza

Your voice matters! Stand with us and the signatory organizations to demand a ceasefire and humanitarian aid for Gaza. Share this statement to amplify the call for justice and dignity. Signatory Organizations:

1. American Friends Service Committee
2. Amnesty International
3. Anera
4. Bisan Center for Research and Development
5. Fund for Global Human Rights
6. Islamic Relief Worldwide
7. Kvinna till Kvinna Foundation
8. Médecins du Monde
9. Médecins Sans Frontières
10. MedGlobal
11. Medical Aid for Palestinians
12. Mennonite Central Committee
13. Middle East Children’s Alliance
14. Norwegian People’s Aid
15. Norwegian Refugee Council
16. Oxfam International
17. Pax Christi International
18. Saferworld
19. Save the Children
20. Terres des Hommes Italia
21. War Child