International relief bodies are seeking an urgent judicial decision to suspend decisions to close them until the full judicial review is completed. In this context, 17 international humanitarian organizations submitted a petition to the Israeli Supreme Court. This is to stop the implementation of the decision to end the work of 37 non-governmental organizations in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and occupied East Jerusalem. The organizations warned of "catastrophic consequences" for civilians.

Published on: 02/24/2026 - 22:31

17 international humanitarian organizations have turned to the Israeli Supreme Court in an effort to avoid being expelled from Gaza and the West Bank. These organizations submitted a petition to stop the implementation of a decision to end the work of 37 non-governmental organizations in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and occupied East Jerusalem. Organizations, including Doctors Without Borders, warned of "catastrophic consequences" for civilians.

These organizations were informed on December 30, 2025, that their registration with the Israeli authorities had expired. It was given 60 days to renew it by submitting a list of the names of its Palestinian employees. In the event of non-compliance, these organizations will be forced to end all their activities in the occupied Palestinian territories as of March 1.

The petitioning organizations said that implementation of the decision had actually begun on the ground, with supplies being prevented from entering and visas being refused to foreign employees. She explained in a statement that “an occupying power must facilitate the sending of aid to civilians under its control” in accordance with the Fourth Geneva Convention related to the protection of civilians in times of war.

The organizations considered that complying with the Israeli request to reveal the names of their local employees might expose these employees to the risk of potential retaliation, undermine the principle of humanitarian neutrality, and violate European data protection laws.

"Practical alternatives"

The text of the petition stated: “Transforming humanitarian organizations into an arm for collecting information for the benefit of one of the parties to the conflict completely contradicts the principle of neutrality.” The petitioners noted that they proposed practical alternatives instead of handing over rosters, including “independent audit procedures” and “verification systems subject to donor scrutiny.”

The organizations confirmed that they together support or provide more than half of the food aid in Gaza, 60 percent of field hospital operations, and all hospital services for children suffering from serious acute malnutrition.

The Israeli government accuses Doctors Without Borders workers of having links to Hamas and its ally, the Islamic Jihad movement, which the organization strongly denies.

France 24/AFP

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