Palestine tribes warn against dealing with dubious Israel-backed aid group

The Palestinian tribes and clans gathering warned Sunday against dealing with the “Gaza Humanitarian Foundation” (GHF), a controversial aid organisation backed by Israel and the US that currently operates in Gaza and which has been complicit in committing massacres against hungry Palestinian civilians seeking food, resulting in the death and injury of hundreds of them.

“We warn against dealing with the American aid company, which acts as a security and military agent for the occupation” the gathering said in a statement, warning that whoever deals with the American aid company “bears full responsibility for themselves and their action”.

Earlier this month, the Swiss Federal Supervisory Authority for Foundations (ASF) ordered the dissolution of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).

The foundation set up its Geneva office earlier this year as an alternative attempt by Israel to bypass the aid distribution in Gaza through UN channels.

READ: Palestinian tribes reject proposal to establish ‘tribal emirate’ in Hebron

This comes as the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) warned that fuel shortage in Gaza is placing “an unbearable new burden on Palestinians teetering on the brink of famine,” and threatens a complete halt to UN relief operations amid the ongoing Israeli blockade of the Strip.

On Saturday, the UN warned that fuel shortage in the Gaza Strip has reached “critical levels”, threatening to exacerbate the suffering of the war-ravaged enclave’s residents. Seven UN agencies confirmed in a joint statement that fuel is the backbone of survival in Gaza, highlighting the need for “fuel to operate hospitals, water systems, sewage networks, ambulances, and all aspects of humanitarian operations as well as bakeries.

The agencies, including the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the World Health Organization, and the World Food Programme, warned that fuel shortage in Gaza has reached critical levels, stressing that the people of Gaza, after nearly two years of war, are facing extreme hardship, particularly widespread food insecurity. “When fuel runs out, it places an unbearable new burden on a population already on the brink of famine” they said.

The UN said agencies responding to the massive humanitarian crisis in parts of the Gaza Strip devastated by Israeli bombing and threatened by famine “may be forced to completely halt operations” if sufficient fuel is not allowed in.

READ: Palestinian tribes express support for resistance