AhlulBayt News Agency: After Israel revoked the operating licenses of Doctors Without Borders (MSF), the humanitarian group announced that it will provide a limited list of staff members to maintain its medical activities in Gaza and other Israeli‑controlled areas.
In a statement issued on Sunday, MSF explained that it will exceptionally submit a specific list of Palestinian and international personnel to prevent its operations from being halted on March 1, 2026.
The organization stated that Israel has forced it into an “impossible choice,” noting that 1,700 healthcare workers—including 15 MSF employees—have been killed since October 2023.
MSF added that its decision comes after months of mounting pressure, blocked medical supplies, and repeated refusals to allow international staff to enter.
The group stressed that Israel has knowingly placed MSF and its Palestinian staff in an untenable position: either disclose staff identities or abandon hundreds of thousands of Palestinians who rely on essential medical services.
Meanwhile, British‑Palestinian surgeon Ghassan Abu Sitta warned that MSF staff are being subjected to the same coercion faced by Palestinians risking their lives at aid distribution points across Gaza.
He further cautioned that the requirement endangers not only MSF workers but also their families, while Israel continues to use familiar terror‑related accusations to undermine humanitarian efforts.
Abu Sitta argued that accepting assurances from an occupying authority responsible for the deaths of 562 aid workers only deepens MSF’s vulnerability.
He also rejected the idea that Palestinians can give genuine consent under such conditions, stating that it is morally bankrupt to assume free consent is possible during genocide.
MSF has firmly denied Israeli allegations that its staff members are connected to Palestinian resistance groups, calling the claims unfounded and unsupported by evidence.
The organization recently warned that such accusations threaten the safety of medical teams and could deprive hundreds of thousands of Palestinians of critical healthcare as Gaza’s medical system nears collapse.
MSF is currently awaiting the renewal of its registration to continue operating in Gaza and the occupied West Bank until December 31, 2025, under new Israeli regulations requiring staff name disclosures.
The group expressed frustration over the absence of clear guidelines from Israeli authorities despite months of communication.
In a previous statement on December 22, 2025, MSF cautioned that Israel’s new NGO registration rules could leave hundreds of thousands of people in Gaza without life‑saving medical services by 2026.
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