Aid Operations in Gaza at Breaking Point as Restrictions Deepen Humanitarian Collapse

International non-governmental organizations operating in Gaza say escalating restrictions are significantly reducing the scale and effectiveness of humanitarian assistance, with direct consequences for education, local service delivery, and civilian well-being.

Humanitarian agencies report that INGOs run or support approximately 30 percent of emergency education activities in Gaza. Even before recent restrictions intensified, these programs reached only a limited share of school-age children, leaving the majority without consistent access to education amid prolonged displacement, infrastructure damage, and insecurity.

Aid organizations have reiterated that they cannot transfer sensitive personal data related to national staff or their families, stating that doing so would violate humanitarian principles, duty-of-care obligations, and international data-protection standards applied globally. In the Gaza context, organizations say these safeguards are critical to protecting staff and their families from additional risk.

Restrictions on INGOs are also affecting Palestinian and Israeli partner organizations that underpin local humanitarian response efforts. Humanitarian groups say these measures are undermining local capacity, disrupting funding flows, and weakening community-based services across sectors including education, health, water and sanitation, and psychosocial support inside Gaza.

As conditions continue to deteriorate, humanitarian actors warn that further constraints could lead to additional program closures, reduced coverage, and longer delays in assistance reaching civilians. INGOs say they will continue operating through United Nations coordination systems and local partnerships where possible, but stress that without changes to current measures, the humanitarian response in Gaza is likely to shrink further, leaving growing numbers of civilians without essential services in the months ahead.