The Media Line: ‘Withholding Aid Is Not a Bargaining Chip’: UN Official Presses for Gaza Access

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‘Withholding Aid Is Not a Bargaining Chip’: UN Official Presses for Gaza Access

As aid convoys stall and rules tighten, officials and NGOs warn that legal obligations and lives are on the line while Israel weighs enforcement of the ceasefire deal

By Keren Setton/The Media Line

A fragile ceasefire between Israel and the Hamas terrorist organization has quieted the fighting, but humanitarian access remains limited, and aid officials say deliveries are still far below needs. On Thursday, UN Undersecretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher called for greater involvement by international NGOs to boost the flow of aid into the embattled territory.

Gaza—already one of the world’s poorest areas before the two-year war—now lies in widespread ruin.

“Since the ceasefire, there have only been a few days when aid has entered so the situation continues to be difficult,” Lihi Levian Joffe, head of the Forum of Israeli Humanitarian Experts and Civil Society Organizations on Gaza, told The Media Line, citing the Jewish holidays as the main reason for closed crossings. “With the ceasefire, there is hope things will improve.”

Earlier this week, Hamas released 20 living Israeli hostages under the deal. It also returned nine bodies, with 19 more still outstanding. Israel, calling this a violation, threatened to shut major crossings and halt aid. While the threat has not been carried out, the episode shows how sensitive the aid track remains.

“Withholding aid is not a bargaining chip,” said Fletcher, as Hamas delayed the return of the deceased. “Facilitation of aid is a legal obligation.”

That same day, after Hamas said it could not return more than the nine bodies, senior Israeli ministers urged Netanyahu to freeze steps that would further cement the ceasefire. “This doesn’t really apply pressure,” Levian Joffe said. “A terrorist organization doesn’t really care about its people or our people, so it’s not a meaningful way to apply pressure on it.”

Hundreds of aid trucks are supposed to enter Gaza daily under the deal. That flow, coming from the UN and others, worries Israel. With Hamas still in de facto control, it will likely oversee distribution, potentially helping it reassert power after the war.

“This is highly concerning,” said Herzberg. “Under UN watch, Hamas diverted billions of dollars and massive material, which allowed it to build its massive tunnel network, to place weapons and fortify the civilian infrastructure there. These organizations, including UN agencies, do not want to implement any counterterrorism restrictions.”

Throughout the war, Israel controlled the entry of all aid into the territory. In March, the government moved to use humanitarian aid as leverage against Hamas and halted deliveries in an effort to pressure the group to accept Israel’s terms to stop the war. That decision drew sharp international criticism and plunged Gaza deeper into crisis.

Earlier this year, Israel tightened regulations for foreign nongovernmental organizations, requiring all international NGOs to reregister under stricter oversight. The measures expand state powers to vet staff and scrutinize funding, and allow rejection of registration based on political activity, including support for boycotts or international legal action against Israel.

“This is a major barrier for the entry of humanitarian aid,” said Levian Joffe. “There are currently many organizations with stocks of goods that are not allowed into Gaza because they are not registered in Israel.”

Israeli officials have shown no intention of changing or canceling this legislation. The government says the reform aims to improve transparency and prevent diversion of aid to terrorist groups while safeguarding national security during the war in Gaza. Humanitarian organizations warn that new—and sometimes vague—criteria and intrusive disclosures could jeopardize staff safety, hinder life-saving aid, and chill legitimate criticism. More than 50 NGOs have condemned the rules as politically motivated and incompatible with international humanitarian law.

Inside Israel, debate has raged over the duty to supply aid to an enemy during war. Officials have accused UN agencies of cooperating with Hamas, including claims that some staff are members of the group. Israel alleges the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) in Gaza employed more than 450 people that it says are terrorists affiliated with Hamas and other groups, and that some were directly involved in the Oct. 7, 2023 attack. The UN says the claims are “unsubstantiated.”

Israel has also accused Hamas of diverting aid to rebuild its stocks and of selling remaining goods to Gazans at inflated prices.

In late May 2025, the Gaza Humanitarian Fund (GHF) was launched as a US-Israeli mechanism to deliver aid directly to civilians while bypassing Hamas. The UN and other organizations criticized the GHF as “militarizing” aid, and reports emerged of deaths, injuries, and stampedes at distribution sites. Reporting suggests the humanitarian annex omits the GHF, leaving its future unclear. The ceasefire, which led to partial Israeli withdrawals from parts of Gaza, also ended Israeli supervision of GHF sites, rendering them inoperable.

Next week, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) will issue an advisory opinion requested by the UN General Assembly on the “presence and activities of the UN, other international organizations and third states in and in relation to the Occupied Palestinian Territory.” The opinion could shape Israel’s dealings with the UN and others on aid to Gaza.

“Under international law, a country cannot arbitrarily prevent aid from going into a territory,” Anne Herzberg, legal advisor at NGO Monitor, a Jerusalem-based research institute, told The Media Line. “A country can put reasonable restrictions like limiting crossing opening times, inspecting aid, and there are provisions under international law that allow prevention of aid if there is suspicion that the aid will be diverted.”

Last month, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Donald Trump announced a Gaza peace plan. The phased deal would end the war, secure the release of Israeli hostages held by Hamas, and ultimately remove the terrorist organization from power in the Strip. According to media reports, the deal contains a confidential humanitarian-aid annex that enables UN agencies, the Red Crescent, and third countries to facilitate aid distribution in Gaza.

Since Israel’s 2005 withdrawal from Gaza, it has warned about dual-use materials—cement, steel pipes, generators, fuel, and certain chemicals—used by Hamas to build tunnels, rockets, weapons, and fortified command centers. Those materials are now essential for reconstruction but could again be weaponized by the group.

According to Herzberg, there is “intense collaboration” between the UN and other organizations and Hamas officials, based on Hamas documents obtained by NGO Monitor. “They are also responsible for what happened on October 7,” she added. “What is going to be different now if Israel lets back in the same people that were responsible for creating the problem in the first place?”

“It means putting back the same failed actors with the same failed policies, without provisions to prevent aid diversion again, nothing is going to be different, and we will fight the same war five years from now,” Herzberg concluded.

The next steps in the agreement stipulate the end of Hamas rule in Gaza. While it is too soon to know if that will be achieved, needs on the ground remain acute. With Hamas still the dominant force, aid risks falling into the wrong hands. “What is needed is a strong international community and a peace-seeking Palestinian community that will take Hamas’ place, in order for it and other terrorist organizations to be kept away from key positions,” said Levian Joffe. “In a reality where there is a power vacuum, the people who are the strongest and who possess weapons will continue to rule, and this is a danger to everyone.”