Israel will revoke the operating licenses of 37 non-governmental organizations working in Gaza and the occupied West Bank starting in January, including Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), after alleging that employees of those organizations “were involved in terrorist activities,” an official from Israel’s Ministry of Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism confirmed.
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The ministry said the affected organizations failed to provide Israeli authorities with “complete and verifiable information about their employees” and accused MSF, without presenting evidence, of having “affiliated individuals” linked to Palestinian Islamist groups “such as Islamic Jihad and Hamas.”
The measure follows new licensing requirements introduced in March 2025 by the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, while Israel’s military offensive in Gaza was ongoing. Under those rules, international NGOs operating in the occupied Palestinian territories are required to disclose the names of all staff members. Licenses may be denied or revoked if organizations deny Israel’s existence as a Jewish and democratic state, promote campaigns to delegitimize Israel, call for boycotts, or support the prosecution of Israeli security forces in foreign or international courts.
The Ministry of Diaspora Affairs stated that the organizations have been notified that their licenses will be revoked as of January 1, 2026, and that they must complete the cessation of their activities by March 1.
Access to life-saving humanitarian assistance in Gaza and the occupied West Bank is facing a major disruption following “Israel’s” decision to revoke the operating licenses of 37 international aid organizations. The Israeli government alleges these groups failed to comply with… pic.twitter.com/emX2McYIYJ
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MSF said on Tuesday that it had not received any notification regarding the Israeli government’s decision and warned that a withdrawal would have “devastating” consequences for Palestinians. In a statement sent to EFE, the organization said that as of December 30 it had received no official communication. MSF noted that it provides around 20 percent of hospital beds in Gaza and assists in one out of every three births in the territory.
“We are urgently seeking solutions to be able to continue providing services to Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank,” MSF said.
In a subsequent statement, MSF said it takes “very seriously” accusations that members of its staff are linked to armed groups and reiterated that it would “never” knowingly hire individuals involved in military activities. The organization added that any staff participation in such activities would pose a “danger” to both its personnel and patients, and criticized that “making such accusations public without substantiated evidence” endangers humanitarian workers and undermines life-saving medical work for Palestinians.
The decision prompted reactions from a group of 10 countries, including France and the United Kingdom, which urged Israel to allow international NGOs and UN agencies such as UNRWA to continue operating in Gaza. In a joint statement disseminated by the French government, the foreign ministers of Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Iceland, Japan, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom expressed “grave concern about the further deterioration of the humanitarian situation in Gaza, which remains catastrophic.”
They warned that with the onset of winter, civilians in Gaza face “appalling conditions, with heavy rains and falling temperatures,” and stressed that 1.3 million people continue to require “urgent shelter support.” The ministers also said the “total collapse of sanitation infrastructure” has left 740,000 people exposed to toxic flooding and that most of the population is experiencing “high levels of acute food insecurity.”
The UN agency for Palestinian refugees says its supplies are ready to enter Gaza amid heavy rain and strong winds that have battered the Palestinian enclave, but Israeli authorities are not allowing it access.
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Among the measures urged on Israel, the countries emphasized that “international NGOs must be able to operate in Gaza in a sustained and predictable manner,” warning that under the new restrictive requirements they risk deregistration. “This could result in the forced closure of their operations within 60 days in Gaza and the West Bank, with a severe impact on essential services,” the statement said, adding that “one in three health facilities in Gaza will close if these operations stop.”
The ministers also called on Israel to allow the United Nations and its partners to continue their work, including UNRWA, “which provides essential health and education services to millions of Palestinian refugees.”
According to a list obtained by EFE from an Israeli government source, the 37 affected organizations include Action Against Hunger, CARE, Oxfam affiliates, the Danish and Norwegian Refugee Councils, Caritas Internationalis and Caritas Jerusalem, the International Rescue Committee, Mercy Corps, War Child Holland, Defense for Children International, Medical Aid for Palestinians (UK), and multiple national sections of Médecins Sans Frontières and Doctors of the World. Several Spanish organizations are also included.
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