Head of Gaza aid organisation resigns hours before controversial plan set to launch
The head of a controversial aid organisation, which says it is ready to start delivering food into Gaza, has resigned saying he does not believe it is possible for the organisation to operate independently or adhere to strict humanitarian principles.
Jake Wood, the executive director of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), announced his resignation late on Sunday, hours before the group said it planned to begin "direct aid delivery" into the Palestinian enclave and after aid organisations sought to distance themselves from the contentious plan.
“I am proud of the work I oversaw, including developing a pragmatic plan that could feed hungry people, address security concerns about diversion, and complement the work of longstanding NGOs in Gaza,” Wood said.
“However, it is clear that it is not possible to implement this plan while also strictly adhering to humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence, which I will not abandon.”
Wood’s departure also comes as investigations in the Washington Post and the New York Times over the weekend raised further questions about the origins of the organisation and its ties to Israeli officials.
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Israeli opposition Yair Lapid continued the scrutiny on Monday, suggesting in a Knesset speech that GHF had been funded by Israel through US shell companies.
A spokesperson for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the office of Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich denied the claim.
Ameer Makhoul, a leading Palestinian activist in Israel, told MEE that the GHF plan for Gaza disseminated “illusions” rather than aid.
Makhoul said: “The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation system is, by its very nature, a system of occupation, control, and displacement. It does not guarantee relief for the Palestinians or an end to the war against them.”
GHF emerged in the public eye earlier this month as Israeli officials began briefing the UN and international NGOs about their new detailed plan to take over - and restrict - aid distribution in Gaza.
Facial recognition for aid
According to a memo of those briefings, aid would be distributed from up to five logistic hubs set up in southern Gaza, run by private security contractors and with facial recognition technology to vet beneficiaries.
It quickly arose that GHF, a hitherto unknown organisation which was registered in Switzerland earlier this year, would be administering the new plan, although a GHF pitch document leaked around that time showed that its proposed plan was slightly different from that unveiled by the Israelis.
For example, the GHF pitch did not mention biometric technology being used at the distribution hubs, with Wood saying publicly he would not have signed up to a plan that fed information back to the Israelis.
The pitch also revealed that GHF appeared to be run by a curious mix of American disaster relief, security and financial experts with little or no experience in Gaza.
Meanwhile, as plans for the takeover of aid distribution in Gaza unfolded rapidly, starvation loomed across the enclave amidst an Israeli blockade on all aid that began on 2 March.
Top humanitarian officials and aid organisations have been highly critical of GHF, saying that a new mechanism for aid delivery was not needed, but rather that Israel should stop obstructing the current UN-led system to function.
Wood said on Sunday that he had been approached two months ago about leading GHF’s efforts, which would suggest that he was brought on board after the organisation was registered in Switzerland and reportedly also in the US, in the state of Delaware, in February.
"At the time, GHF was a loose constellation of various ideas and concepts among a wide range of stakeholders and I sought to establish it as a truly independent humanitarian entity," he said.
He urged Israel to "significantly expand the provision of aid into Gaza through all mechanisms".
"I urge all stakeholders to continue to explore innovative new methods for the delivery of aid, without delay, diversion or discrimination," Wood said.
GHF's board said it was disappointed to learn of Wood's sudden resignation, but said it would continue beginning to deliver direct aid to Gaza on Monday and would reach one million Palestinians by the end of the week.
"We will not be deterred. Our trucks are loaded and ready to go... GHF will deliver a practical, immediate, and secure approach to delivering essential aid - one that ensures the dignity of Gazans and that is fully consistent with the humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence," the board said, mirroring Wood's own resignation language.
"With time, we are confident everyone will see that for themselves."
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