The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation announced Monday that it will end its operation in the besieged enclave.
The GHF took over the aid operations in Gaza in May after the Israeli government approved the resumption of military aid, though it had not been operating since the start of the ceasefire agreement struck last month.
“From the outset, GHF’s goal was to meet an urgent need, prove that a new approach could succeed where others had failed, and ultimately hand off that success to the broader international community,” GHF Executive Director John Acree said in a statement. “With the creation of the Civil-Military Coordination Center (CMCC) and a rejuvenated engagement of the international humanitarian community, GHF believes that moment has now arrived.”
The organization, which said it has delivered more than 187 million free meals directly to civilians, faced criticism after the distribution sites turned to chaos as desperate Palestinians crowded them to gain access to the facilities.
U.N. officials said last month that approximately 2,100 Palestinians were killed while seeking aid, including many who were near one of GHF’s four sites.
“GHF has been in talks with the CMCC and international organizations now for weeks about the way forward and it’s clear they will be adopting and expanding the model GHF piloted,” Acree added. “As a result, we are winding down our operations as we have succeeded in our mission of showing there’s a better way to deliver aid to Gazans.”
The organization said it was open to restarting operations if the need arises.
Israel’s war against Hamas, which was instigated by Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks in southern Israel, lasted for about two years before the current ceasefire was enacted. In two years of sustained conflict, Gaza’s infrastructure was largely destroyed, and reconstruction will take several years.
The Gaza Health Ministry, which is controlled by Hamas, has said more than 60,000 people were killed during the war, though that total does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.
HOW ISRAEL’S CEASEFIRES WITH HAMAS AND HEZBOLLAH ARE HOLDING UP
The United Nations Security Council voted last week in favor of a resolution endorsing President Donald Trump’s peace plan, even though both Israel and Hamas have problems with it that prevented previous ceasefires from lasting.
Hamas has not agreed to disarm, and Israel has not agreed to a pathway for future Palestinian statehood, both of which are nonnegotiable demands that negotiators have been unable to resolve.