Controversial Christian Zionist appointed to lead US-Israel Gaza aid scheme GHF

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a widely criticised US-Israeli initiative accused of facilitating Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza, has appointed an evangelical Christian Zionist, Rev Johnnie Moore, a close ally of Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu, as its new executive director.

Moore’s appointment follows the abrupt resignation of Jake Wood, a former US marine and humanitarian aid leader, who left the role citing the GHF’s inability to operate “while upholding humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence.”

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In his resignation letter, Wood warned that the GHF could not “strictly adhere to humanitarian principles” while functioning under current political and military constraints. His critique has been echoed by humanitarian organisations, who have denounced the GHF as a politically compromised apparatus enabling collective punishment. 

The UN, Human Rights Watch, Oxfam, and Doctors Without Borders have all condemned the initiative, warning that it facilitates Israel’s control over the distribution of life-saving aid while failing to protect civilians. Critics describe the foundation as a “militarised aid scheme” that turns humanitarian corridors into zones of violence and death, rather than refuge, undermining international law and weaponising starvation as a tool of war.

READ: ‘Humanitarian staff’ in Gaza are US intelligence agents engaged in espionage, rights group warns

The Boston Consulting Group, previously involved in logistics, also reportedly withdrew from the project, further deepening doubts about the foundation’s legitimacy.

Human rights groups have also denounced the initiative warning that it has created death traps for starving Palestinians. Dozens have been killed by Israeli forces while attempting to reach GHF distribution points. 

Despite mounting evidence, Moore has publicly defended Israel’s narrative, including dismissing reports of a massacre near Rafah that killed 31 Palestinians seeking aid. He has smeared critics, including Palestinian Christian pastor Rev Munther Isaac as “antisemitic,” and has denounced the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant for Netanyahu as an act of “white-collar antisemitism.”

Moore, president of the Congress of Christian Leaders, has longstanding ties to US and Israeli far-right figures, having served twice under President Trump and helped coordinate the evangelical alliance with Netanyahu. He is also a vocal supporter of Trump’s proposed plan for the US to assume control over Gaza, an agenda that amounts to ethnic cleansing and colonial occupation.

Palestinian officials have called for an international investigation into the GHF, citing credible reports that the foundation is being run with the support of private military contractors and criminal syndicates aligned with Israeli interests. The Swiss government and former diplomats have also demanded Switzerland sever all ties with the project, citing its violations of neutrality and international humanitarian law.

As the humanitarian crisis in Gaza worsens—with famine conditions, mass displacement, and over 54,000 Palestinians killed—the GHF continues to operate with impunity. Its latest appointment only deepens fears that aid is being weaponised as part of a broader strategy to ethnically cleanse the Palestinian population.

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