International humanitarian organizations operating in the occupied Palestinian territory have warned that Israel’s recent registration measures threaten to halt their operations at a time of extreme civilian need, despite the ceasefire in Gaza. On 30 December, 37 international NGOs (INGOs) received official notice that their registrations would expire on 31 December 2025, initiating a 60-day period after which they would be required to cease operations in Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem.
INGOs play an indispensable role in the humanitarian response, partnering with the United Nations and Palestinian civil society organizations to provide lifesaving assistance at scale. The United Nations, the Humanitarian Country Team, and donor governments have repeatedly emphasized the necessity of INGOs for both humanitarian and development operations and have urged Israel to reverse its measures.
Humanitarian needs remain acute across the region. In Gaza, one in four families survives on a single meal per day, and winter storms have displaced tens of thousands, leaving 1.3 million people in urgent need of shelter. INGOs deliver more than half of all food assistance, run or support 60 percent of field hospitals, implement nearly three-quarters of shelter and non-food item programs, and provide all treatment for children with severe acute malnutrition. Their removal would lead to the closure of health facilities, cessation of food distributions, collapse of shelter programs, and interruption of critical medical care.
In the West Bank, ongoing military raids and settler violence continue to drive displacement, and additional restrictions on INGOs would severely reduce the continuity and reach of lifesaving assistance at a critical time. Efforts to measure the impact of deregistering INGOs through selective metrics fail to capture the actual delivery of humanitarian aid, which must ensure that civilians receive the right assistance, in the right place, at the right time.
INGOs operate under strict donor-mandated compliance frameworks, including audits, counterterror financing controls, and due diligence requirements aligned with international standards. More than 500 humanitarian workers have been killed since 7 October 2023, and organizations cannot transfer sensitive personal data to parties in the conflict without breaching humanitarian principles, duty of care, and global data protection obligations. False narratives further delegitimize humanitarian work, endanger staff, and hinder aid delivery.
The deregistration of INGOs is not merely a technical or administrative matter but a deliberate policy decision with predictable humanitarian consequences. Allowing registrations to lapse would obstruct aid at scale, violating the legal obligations of Israel under international humanitarian law and undermining the internationally recognized framework governing the territory. The measure also sets a dangerous precedent by extending Israeli control over humanitarian operations, contrary to the role of the Palestinian Authority.
International organizations call on Israel to immediately halt deregistration proceedings and lift measures that obstruct humanitarian assistance. They also urge donor governments to use all available leverage to reverse these actions. Protecting independent and principled humanitarian operations is essential to ensure civilians continue to receive urgent aid.
INGOs provide critical services across all sectors. In health, they run or support approximately 60 percent of Gaza’s field hospitals, and deregistration could close one in three facilities. In food security, they delivered more than half of all assistance in 2024. For shelter, INGOs implement nearly three-quarters of programs and maintain supply pipelines for approximately 600,000 items. They provide 42 percent of water and sanitation services, including outbreak prevention, and operate all centers treating children with severe acute malnutrition. INGOs also fund over half of explosive hazard clearance and support about 30 percent of emergency education activities, which already serve a limited number of school-age children.
Restrictions on INGOs further affect local Palestinian and Israeli partner organizations by undermining response capacity, disrupting funding flows, and weakening community-based services. INGOs remain legally authorized to operate, committed to delivering aid through UN coordination systems and local partnerships, while actively seeking the removal of measures that obstruct humanitarian assistance.
