BRUSSELS 

UN experts on Tuesday called for the immediate dismantling of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), warning that its operations are deepening the suffering of Palestinians and undermining international humanitarian law.

In a statement, the experts said Palestinians are "paying the ultimate price of the international community’s legal, political and moral failure" as the death toll in Gaza surpasses 60,000, with over 90% of the population forcibly displaced.

The GHF established by Israel in February 2025 with the backing of the US, was set up to distribute aid in the Gaza Strip. However, UN experts described it as "an utterly disturbing example of how humanitarian relief can be exploited for covert military and geopolitical agendas in serious breach of international law."

"Under any circumstances, when war crimes are overlooked in exchange for temporary relief, impunity can become normalised. Yet, in this case, we are leaving a State accused of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity in charge of feeding the population affected by the genocide without oversight and with impunity. This overt hypocrisy is disturbing," the experts said.

Since the GHF began operating in late May, Israeli forces and foreign military contractors are said to have opened fire on people seeking aid at its distribution sites. Since then, nearly 1,400 people have been killed and over 4,000 injured while attempting to access food, including at least 859 fatalities around GHF facilities alone, according to the UN.

The experts condemned the use of "humanitarian camouflage" by Israel, calling the foundation's name "an insult to the humanitarian enterprise and standards."

"Seeing children dying of hunger in their parents' arms should shake us out of our complacency," they said. "Blocking or delaying aid is not just inhumane – it is a war crime where it is intended to starve civilians and in the context of a well-documented and globally denounced genocide."

"The credibility and effectiveness of humanitarian assistance must be restored by dismantling the GHF, holding it and its executives accountable, and allowing experienced and humanitarian actors from the UN and civil society alike to take back the reins of managing and distributing lifesaving aid," the statement said.

The experts urged member states to impose a full arms embargo on Israel, suspend trade and investment agreements that harm Palestinians, and ensure accountability for corporate entities complicit in violations.