JERUSALEM — Israel revokes 37 aid group licenses for international humanitarian organizations working in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, Israeli officials said Tuesday. The government says the new vetting system is meant to keep Hamas and other militants from exploiting aid channels, while relief groups warn the rules are politicized and could endanger staff, Dec. 30, 2025.
The Ministry of Diaspora Affairs said the permits will expire Jan. 1, 2026, after the organizations failed to meet new registration requirements demanding detailed information about staff, funding and operations. As Israel revokes 37 aid group licenses, groups say the decision could shutter offices in Israel and East Jerusalem and make it harder to run cross-border aid operations; the ministry said appeals are possible, according to an Associated Press report.
A separate AP list of affected organizations includes Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières), CARE, Oxfam, World Vision and the Norwegian Refugee Council.
Why Israel revokes 37 aid group licenses
Under the rules announced earlier this year, aid organizations must submit staff names and other operational details to keep access for aid work. The regulations also add ideological criteria, including disqualifying groups that have called for boycotts of Israel, denied the Oct. 7 attack or supported international court cases against Israeli soldiers or leaders.
“The message is clear: humanitarian assistance is welcome — the exploitation of humanitarian frameworks for terrorism is not,” Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli said.
COGAT, the Israeli defense body that oversees humanitarian aid to Gaza, said the 37 organizations account for less than 1% of the total aid entering the territory and that assistance will continue through groups that received permits.
Aid agencies and the U.N. warn of fallout
Humanitarian groups say Israel revokes 37 aid group licenses as Gaza’s needs remain acute, even under a fragile ceasefire. In a Dec. 17 warning carried by Reuters, the U.N. and more than 200 organizations said deregistering international NGOs would have a “catastrophic impact” on access to essential services.
Doctors Without Borders said the requirements threaten its work in Gaza and rejected allegations that its staff have ties to armed groups. In a Dec. 22 statement, MSF said the rules risk leaving hundreds of thousands of people without lifesaving healthcare in 2026.
A longer arc of scrutiny
Israel has repeatedly accused aid bodies and civil society groups of militant links or exploitation of humanitarian cover — allegations many organizations reject. Israel’s parliament passed a law in October 2024 banning UNRWA from operating inside Israel, Reuters reported, and in 2021 Israel designated six Palestinian civil society groups as terrorist organizations, also reported by Reuters.
What happens next
Israel revokes 37 aid group licenses as the government says appeals are possible, but the suspensions start Jan. 1. Aid groups say the policy will narrow the number of actors able to deliver relief and are urging Israel and key allies to revise the requirements before they take full effect.
