Israel to bar MSF from Gaza after charity refuses to hand over staff lists

Israel announced it will block the activities of Médecins Sans Frontières in Gaza following the charity’s refusal to supply names of its Palestinian and international staff to Israeli authorities. The government’s order is part of a wider demand that 37 aid groups submit personnel documents, a requirement presented as a security measure aimed at preventing militant infiltration of humanitarian structures. MSF rejects allegations of links between its staff and armed groups and says it will not share lists without concrete guarantees that the data will be used only for administrative purposes and will not endanger colleagues. While MSF signalled a willingness to provide names under strict protective conditions, it says Israeli authorities did not provide the assurances needed to secure staff safety. The ministry has said operations must cease within 60 days where registration requirements are not met, a deadline that forces organisations to weigh legal compliance against duty of care to employees. In Gaza MSF supplies a substantial slice of clinical capability — including roughly a fifth of hospital bed capacity and some twenty health centres — so its removal would immediately reduce available treatment points. The charity’s recent annual activity levels, measured in hundreds of thousands of consultations and thousands of births, illustrate the scale of services at risk if access is curtailed. Several governments condemned the policy, warning it will exacerbate shortages in essential services, while UN agencies and humanitarian coordinators flagged likely negative consequences for patient care. The dispute crystallises a wider tension between state security prerogatives and humanitarian principles of staff protection and confidentiality. Practical outcomes in the coming weeks will hinge on whether an enforceable framework for data protection can be negotiated or whether organisations withdraw or are excluded, further straining an already fragile health system. For now the decision marks a clear escalation in regulatory pressure on international NGOs operating in Gaza, with immediate operational, legal and human-security implications.