Gaza Humanitarian Foundation ends operations

JERUSALEM - The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, the controversial organisation backed by the United States and Israel to distribute aid in Gaza, announced on Monday that it was ending its operations.

"The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) today announced the successful completion of its emergency mission in Gaza after delivering more than 187 million free meals directly to civilians living in Gaza," the group said in a statement.

The organisation bypasses traditional relief agencies and has been criticised by humanitarian organisations, including the United Nations, for alleged lack of neutrality, which it denies.

In August, a UN-mandated expert panel alleged that under the GHF aid was "exploited for covert military and geopolitical agendas" and United Nations special rapporteurs called for it to be disbanded.

The UN human rights office reported that scores of Palestinians were killed by Israeli soldiers while seeking aid from GHF distribution sites.

The foundation said in its statement on Monday that it had been in talks with other international humanitarian organisations and with the Civil-Military Coordination Centre, a task force set up by the US and its allies in southern Israel to monitor the truce in Gaza.

"GHF's model, in which Hamas could no longer loot and profit from stealing aid, played a huge role in getting Hamas to the table and achieving a ceasefire. We thank them for all that they provided to Gazans," Tommy Pigott, a spokesman for the US State Department, wrote on X.