In the 14 months since Hamas killed 1,200 people and kidnapped 254 hostages during its Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attack against Israel, evidence of Western aid dollars enriching terrorist organizations and operatives in Gaza has grown. The United Nations and donor countries have been slow to accept this evidence or make changes to their operational partners and methods.
On Dec. 11, 2024, the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs made a flash appeal for $4.07 billion to support U.N., NGO, and international NGO partners operating in Gaza and the West Bank in 2025. Watchdog group NGO Monitor has noted myriad issues with the appeal, including a lack of transparency about the partner organizations and agencies it operates with, and no discussion of methods to “prevent, or even mitigate [aid] diversion by Hamas and other armed actors.”
Yona Schiffmiller,…
