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Humanitarian Crisis Deepens as Israel Expels Critical Medical Aid Organization
In a move that threatens to worsen an already dire humanitarian situation, Israel has ordered Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières, MSF) to cease all operations in Gaza by February 28, 2026. The decision comes after the Nobel Peace Prize-winning organization refused to provide Israeli authorities with detailed lists of its Palestinian staff members, citing serious safety concerns for its personnel.
The Registration Dispute
The Israeli Ministry of Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism announced that MSF had failed to comply with registration requirements that apply to all humanitarian organizations operating in the region. 'We know that Doctors Without Borders employs people who are active in terrorist organizations, which is why the organization keeps its staff lists secret,' stated Minister Amichai Chikli, repeating allegations that MSF strongly denies.
According to Israeli officials, the information is necessary to verify whether MSF employees have ties to groups like Hamas. However, MSF maintains it has never knowingly hired individuals affiliated with terrorist organizations and says it requested guarantees about how the data would be used before sharing sensitive information.
Safety Concerns and Humanitarian Impact
MSF initially agreed to share staff information in early January but ultimately reversed its decision. 'We asked Israel for guarantees about how the information would be used, but we did not receive them,' explained an MSF spokesperson. 'We decided on Friday that it was not safe to share the data.'
The organization warns of 'devastating consequences' for Gaza's humanitarian situation if forced to leave. MSF provides approximately one-third of maternal care in Gaza, supplies clean drinking water to about one-third of the population, and supports roughly 20% of hospital beds in the territory. In 2025 alone, the organization conducted over 800,000 medical consultations across its 20 health centers in Gaza.
Broader Context and International Response
This decision follows Israel's December announcement that it would prevent 37 aid organizations from working in Gaza starting March 1 for similar compliance failures. The move comes amid ongoing conflict that began in October 2023, during which 15 MSF employees have been killed.
International observers express deep concern about the potential collapse of Gaza's already fragile healthcare system. 'This is not about security—it's a pretext to obstruct humanitarian assistance,' said one humanitarian worker familiar with the situation. 'When you remove an organization that handles a third of births and provides water to a third of the population, you're condemning people to suffer and die.'
The situation in Gaza remains critical, with MSF reporting that 81% of structures are destroyed or damaged, over 1 million children need mental health support, and famine has been declared in Gaza City. The organization has treated over 100,000 trauma cases and assisted more than 10,000 births in 2025 alone.
As the February 28 deadline approaches, humanitarian organizations worldwide are calling for a reversal of the decision, warning that Gaza's most vulnerable populations—including pregnant women, children, and the critically ill—will bear the brunt of MSF's forced departure.
