Event Summary
In January 2026, Israeli authorities revoked the operating licenses of 37 international humanitarian organisations working in the Gaza Strip under a newly imposed registration mechanism targeting international actors. The affected organisations were formally notified that their licenses would be cancelled and that all humanitarian activities must cease by March 2026.
This decision represents a serious escalation in restrictions on humanitarian action by civil society actors in an already devastated context. It directly undermines the delivery of life-saving assistance, disrupts established humanitarian coordination mechanisms, and further narrows humanitarian space at a time of unprecedented civilian need in Gaza. The measure forms part of a broader and systematic pattern of actions aimed at constraining international humanitarian and civil society actors operating in the occupied Palestinian territory, including similar actions imposed on the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).
Humanitarian and civil society organisations have rejected the justification to these measures and warn that these restrictions constitute a grave violation of international humanitarian law and the principle of unimpeded humanitarian access. If allowed to continue, they risk accelerating the collapse of humanitarian response systems, deepening civilian suffering, and entrenching a model of controlled and politicised aid incompatible with humanitarian principles.