A controversial US-backed aid group for Gaza announced Monday that it had begun distributing food in the war-ravaged Palestinian territory, and decried Hamas "death threats" against organisations supporting its operations.
The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) said in a statement that it "commenced operations in Gaza today, delivering truckloads of food to its Secure Distribution Sites, where distribution to the Gazan people began".
"More trucks with aid will be delivered tomorrow, with the flow of aid increasing each day."
The organisation, based in Geneva since February, has promised to distribute some 300 million meals in its first 90 days of operation.
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It is not clear who is funding the group, which is made up of former humanitarian, government and military officials. The group has said its distribution points will be guarded by private security firms and that the aid would reach a million Palestinians – around half of Gaza’s population – by the end of the week.
The announcement came as Israel is facing global condemnation over the conditions in Gaza, where it has been at war since Hamas's unprecedented October 7, 2023 attack.
A nearly three-month total blockade on Gaza has only begun to ease in recent days, amid warnings of looming famine.
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The United Nations and international aid agencies have meanwhile said they will not cooperate with the GHF, amid accusations it is working with Israel while lacking any Palestinian involvement.
UN officials have raised concerns that the organisation could be used to "weaponise" aid by restricting who is eligible to receive it.
Hamas warned Palestinians on Monday not to co-operate with the new aid system, saying it is part of Israel's plans to transfer much of Gaza's population to other countries.
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Israel says it plans to facilitate what it describes as the voluntary migration of much of Gaza's population of 2 million, a plan rejected by Palestinians and much of the international community.
Israel’s military campaign has destroyed vast areas of Gaza and internally displaced some 90 percent of its population. Many have fled multiple times.
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GHF said Hamas was striving to block its operations.
It condemned "in the strongest terms Hamas's death threats targeting aid groups supporting humanitarian operations at GHF's Safe Distribution Sites, and efforts to block the Gazan people from accessing aid at the sites".
"It is clear that Hamas is threatened by this new operating model, and will do everything in its power to see it fail," it said.
While stressing its "non-negotiable" dedication to the safety and security of aid workers and civilians, GHF insisted "these threats will not deter us".
"We are taking every measure to ensure secure operations and will continue working with trusted partners to deliver aid with integrity."
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The group is meanwhile facing internal turmoil.
In a statement on Sunday, GHF's executive director for the past two months, Jake Wood, said he felt compelled to leave after determining the organisation could not fulfil its mission in a way that adhered to humanitarian principles.
He said it had become "clear that it is not possible to implement this plan while also strictly adhering to the humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence, which I will not abandon".
On Monday, the GHF announced it had named John Acree interim executive director, hailing his "more than two decades of global field experience in disaster response, stabilisation programming and civil-military coordination".
(FRANCE 24 with AFP and AP)
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