MSF warns of Gaza operation shutdown amid Israeli ban on international NGOs

GAZA, Jan. 04 (YPA) – Isabelle Defourny, President of Doctors Without Borders (MSF), has warned that the organization could be forced to end its operations in the Gaza Strip by March if “Israel” does not reverse its decision to ban its activities, along with 36 other organizations.

On Thursday, Israeli occupation confirmed it would “enforce the ban” on the activities of 37 major international humanitarian organizations in Gaza because they had not provided lists of their Palestinian employees’ names, in compliance with new legislation.

MSF described the decision as a “flagrant overreach.”

“To work in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, employee names must be registered, and this registration expired in December 2025,” Defourny stated.

MSF currently maintains approximately 40 international staff members in the Gaza Strip and collaborates with 800 Palestinian employees across eight hospitals.

A Witness to Violence

Defourny believes the Israeli occupation decision stems from the fact that NGOs “witness the violence committed by the Israeli occupation army” in Gaza.

“International journalists have never been allowed entry into Gaza, while local journalists are being targeted and killed by the Israeli army,” she added.

Defourny emphasized the critical scale of their work: “We are the second-largest water distributor in the Gaza Strip. In 2025, we treated just over 100,000 people for burns and various injuries, and we rank second in terms of the number of births we facilitate.”

Rising Toll on Humanitarian Workers

The MSF President noted that more than 500 humanitarian workers—including 15 members of MSF—have been killed in Israeli strikes since October 2023.

Despite the restrictions, Defourny confirmed that the organization is still attempting to maintain a presence: “We still have international staff who were recently able to enter Gaza within the last few days.”

YPA