Gaza: Starvation or Gunfire - This is Not a Humanitarian Response
In the following statement, NP and 160+ NGOs call for immediate action to end the deadly Israeli distribution scheme (including the so-called Gaza Humanitarian Foundation) in Gaza.
We demand urgent action to end the deadly Israeli distribution scheme, restore the UN-led coordination mechanism, and lift the blockade on humanitarian and commercial supplies.
The statement highlights how two million people in Gaza have been pushed into overcrowded, militarized zones where they face daily gunfire and mass casualties while trying to access food. In less than four weeks, more than 500 Palestinians have been killed and nearly 4,000 injured while attempting to reach or distribute food. Families face an impossible choice: starve or risk being shot.
Additionally, the statement underscores that this is not a humanitarian response. It warns that the current scheme neither protects civilians nor meets basic needs, and is instead designed to sustain a cycle of desperation, danger, and death.
It calls on states to:
- Take concrete measures to end the suffocating siege and uphold the right of civilians in Gaza to safely access aid and receive protection.
- Urge donors not to fund militarized aid schemes that violate international law, deepen harm, and risk complicity in atrocities.
- Support the restoration of a unified, UN-led coordination mechanism, grounded in international humanitarian law and inclusive of UNRWA, Palestinian civil society, and the wider humanitarian community.
Read or download the full statement: