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SvennoJ on 01 January 2026
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Ex-UN official calls Israel’s request for staff names ‘nonsense’

Martin Griffiths, a former UN under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs, has said Israeli authorities’ requesting the names of humanitarian workers is not a new issue, following Israel’s announcement that it was banning a group of international organisations on the basis that they were not complying with its measures.

But Griffiths added in an interview with Al Jazeera that humanitarian organisations tend not to comply, dismissing the request as “nonsense” that was newly introduced.

He said the dilemma is that organisations that don’t comply will be banned and cannot serve people who are in need, creating tension between operational and principled imperatives of humanitarian organisations.

Griffiths warned that providing the names would set a precedent that other governments in conflict zones might begin introducing too.


‘People need more services, not less’ in Gaza, warns MSF

Doctors Without Borders, also known by its French acronym MSF, warned that hundreds of thousands of Palestinians could lose access to essential medical care as Israel’s revocation of licences comes into effect.

“The Palestinian health system is decimated, essential infrastructure is destroyed, and people struggle to meet basic needs. People need more services, not less. If MSF and other INGOs lose access, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians would be cut off from essential care. We currently support one in five hospital beds and the delivery of one in three births in Gaza,” MSF said in a post on X.

“In 2025 alone, we provided nearly 800,000 outpatient consultations, treated over 100,000 trauma cases, performed 22,700 surgeries, assisted more than 10,000 births, and distributed nearly 700 million litres of water,” it added.