The admin just gave $30M to GHF, the organization at the center of charges that Israel is weaponizing assistance and shooting at desperate civilians seeking it.
By Stavroula Pabst, Responsible Statecraft
Many human rights organizations say it should shut down. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have killed hundreds of Palestinians at or around its aid centers. And yet, the U.S. has committed no less than $30 million toward the controversial, Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).
As famine-like conditions grip Gaza, the GHF says it has given over 50 million meals to Palestinians at its four aid centers in central and southern Gaza Strip since late May. These centers are operated by armed U.S. private contractors, and secured by IDF forces present at or near them.
Through almost-daily email campaigns and X posts, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation contends its work provides critical aid to Palestinians. But these assertions ring hollow when juxtaposed against the disastrous, widely condemned state of its Gaza operations, where IDF soldiers have reportedly been instructed to shoot Palestinians at or around their centers almost every day
The GHF passes itself off as an independenthumanitarian group. In fact, it was conceived by Israeli officials at the beginning of the war, with buy-in from Israeli tech investors and venture capitalists, as well as stafffromIsrael’s state-aid coordinators, or COGAT (Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories). Israeli opposition lawmakers allege that Mossad, Israel’s intelligence agency, has funded the GHF. Meanwhile, former CIA officer Paul Reilly was allegedly in on the ground floor of the scheme and founded Safe Reach Solutions, one of the two U.S.-based private contracting firms managing the aid hubs. A former U.S. Special Forces soldier heads the other.
For their part, Israeli officials say the GHF is the only safe way to get direct aid to the Palestinians inside. The World Food Programme has found it nearly impossible to operate in Gaza due to the security situation, often halting its operations, while Israel banned the UN program UNRWA, which was the predominant source of aid for Palestinians there, in January.
Eager to depict itself as a force for good, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation inundates reporters with near-daily communications boasting of the number of meals provided to Gazans, and frequently featuring photos of smiling Palestinians, especially children, receiving aid. Its X account and new, flashy website employ similar messaging and photos.
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