OPINION:
“Humanitarian crisis.” “Immediate cease-fire.”
In countless public statements, news releases and social media messages, the leaders of international nongovernmental organizations and U.N. officials have demanded that Israel call off its invasion of Gaza.
They accuse Israel of violating international law and condemn the United States and other allies for their support of the war against Hamas. This consensus has little room for anything beyond token recognition of Hamas’ atrocities on Oct. 7. Apparently, the slaughter of Israelis and the persistent threat posed by its genocidal neighbors are not high humanitarian priorities.
The NGOs also leave out the central element of the Gaza humanitarian crisis. They fail to mention Hamas’ decades of terrorism targeting Israelis and Jews and the group’s repression of Palestinians. A key part of this, implicating the NGOs, is Hamas’ systematic exploitation and commandeering of aid for terror purposes.
Acknowledging this reality would require the leaders of these NGOs to confront their own culpability in the current humanitarian situation in Gaza.
For years, governments, international NGOs and U.N. agencies have poured billions of dollars of humanitarian aid into Gaza.
But in the absence of oversight and safeguards, this aid was and is being diverted by Hamas and other Gaza-based terrorist groups. Hamas used concrete meant for rebuilding houses and civilian construction for miles of tunnels and fabricated tens of thousands of rockets out of pipes intended for water and sewage infrastructure. By stealing donated funds and selling appropriated aid, Hamas leaders enriched themselves and their terror group at the expense of the people of Gaza.
The added evidence accrued since Oct. 7 confirms the egregiousness of aid diversion in Gaza. Hamas hoarded a “rich trove” of food and medicine to supply its troops, anticipating months of hiding. Israeli forces found medical and other gear, originally provided by U.N. agencies, in tunnels and among the items left behind by terrorists massacring civilians in Israeli border towns.
As seen in videos from Gaza, Hamas has continued to steal aid during the war from increasingly desperate civilians. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency admitted that Hamas Ministry of Health personnel “removed fuel and medical equipment from the Agency’s compound in Gaza city.”
All of this is in addition to the exploitation of hospitals, schools, mosques and youth centers to store weapons and shield terror operations.
Despite the ample evidence, NGO leaders irresponsibly and negligently proceeded with business as usual. They were seemingly oblivious to what was happening with the aid they had provided. Their silence was deliberate and calculated.
Worse yet, instead of strengthening aid protection, these influential NGOs campaigned in the U.S. and Europe to weaken the vital vetting measures meant to prevent diversion and abuse. One of the most consistent lobbyists against any oversight measures, which could reduce or prevent terrorists like Hamas or ISIS from stealing aid for use in their brutal attacks and regimes, is Jan Egeland, secretary-general of the Norwegian Refugee Council.
In December 2020, he addressed a conference organized by France’s Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, demanding “exemptions from counter-terrorism laws and sanctions regimes. … We need blanket humanitarian exemptions. … We need you to champion that there will be no vetting of the ultimate beneficiaries of humanitarian relief.”
This typifies the irresponsible approach of the humanitarian NGO community.
Eventually, the war in Gaza will end, and the rebuilding will begin. In all likelihood, governments — which have already pledged hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to Gaza since October — will once again funnel hundreds of millions more to their so-called trusted partners among NGOs and U.N. agencies. The aid industry will proclaim its objectivity and neutrality and continue to angle for the largesse bestowed by government donors.
To avoid repeating the previous disaster that contributed significantly to Hamas’ ability to carry out the Oct. 7 massacre, international NGOs and U.N. agencies will need to embrace and demonstrate real accountability in the humanitarian sphere. Whatever the “day after” looks like in Gaza, long-overdue reforms are necessary to prevent the next disaster and to ensure that NGO aid reaches the intended recipients.
• Naftali Balanson is chief of staff at NGO Monitor (www.ngo-monitor.org), a Jerusalem-based research institute.
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