PHILADELPHIA (August 14, 2025) Today, more than 100 organizations issued a statement in opposition to Israel’s obstruction of humanitarian aid and efforts to ban aid organizations. The consequences are deadly; In Gaza people are dying of starvation while most major international NGOs have been blocked from delivering a single truck of lifesaving supplies for months. Read the full statement here.
“Palestinians are being starved to death just a few kilometers from trucks full of food,” said Joyce Ajlouny, General Secretary for the American Friends Service Committee. “Israel is instituting as many obstacles as possible to prevent humanitarian workers from saving lives. We need the U.S. and all states to leverage their influence to end the weaponization of hunger, eliminate of unreasonable or impossible bureaucratic constraints, and institute an immediate and unconditional opening of all land crossings so that we can deliver lifesaving food and supplies.”
In July alone, Israel denied more than 60 requests from humanitarian organizations, who were told they were “not authorized” to provide aid. Many of these NGOs have worked in Gaza for decades, are trusted by communities, and experienced in delivering aid safely. Israel’s obstruction has left hospitals without basic supplies, children, people with disabilities, and older people dying from hunger and preventable illnesses, and aid workers themselves going to work hungry.
The organizations are calling on all states and donors to:
- Press Israel to end the weaponization of aid, including through bureaucratic obstruction, such as the INGO registration procedures.
- Insist that INGOs are not forced to share sensitive personal information, in violation of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), or compromise staff safety or independence as a condition for delivering aid.
- Demand the immediate and unconditional opening of all land crossings and conditions for the delivery of lifesaving humanitarian aid.
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The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) promotes a world free of violence, inequality, and oppression. Guided by the Quaker belief in the divine Light within each person, we nurture the seeds of change and the respect for human life to fundamentally transform our societies and institutions. We work with people and partners worldwide, of all faiths and backgrounds, to meet urgent community needs, challenge injustice, and build peace.