Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has been working in Palestine before and throughout the current war, providing desperately needed medical care and assistance in a fast-changing, politically charged setting. Here are some of the questions frequently asked about our work as it pertains to the ongoing crisis.
FAQ: How MSF’s Registration Status Threatens Medical Care in Gaza and the West Bank
What is the current status of MSF’s registration to operate in Gaza and the West Bank under the Israeli registration process?
As of Jan. 1, 2026, MSF’s registration is no longer valid, and we will be required to cease operations by March 1, 2026.
Our application is considered still pending and incomplete. This is because, although we have complied with Israel’s requirements, we continue to seek reassurances and clarity over a concerning request to share a staff list, which may be in violation of Israel’s obligations under international humanitarian law and of our humanitarian principles. We will be exploring all possible avenues to alter the outcomes of this decision.
MSF is committed to remaining in Palestine and delivering lifesaving medical care in Gaza and the West Bank. For 2026, we have committed an estimated 100 to 120 million euros (160 to 195 million CAD) for our humanitarian response in Gaza. Many of the services provided by MSF are largely unavailable elsewhere in Gaza due to the destruction of the health system. We are calling on the Israeli authorities to ensure that MSF and other international non-governmental organizations (INGOs) are registered in Israel to continue working in the West Bank and Gaza in 2026.
What will happen if MSF is not re-registered?
We have understood that, according to the Israeli authorities, by not being registered in Israel MSF would be expected to wind down our operations and withdraw from Gaza and West Bank within 60 days. It is unclear how this would be enforced but it is likely we
would no longer be able to bring in international staff and supplies. MSF won’t be able to organize the safe coordination of movement and presence with Israeli forces or coordinate the humanitarian response with Israeli authorities. This would effectively make it impossible for us to deliver essential humanitarian aid.
If MSF and other INGOs lose access to people in acute humanitarian need, it will be a disaster for millions of Palestinians. MSF supports one in five hospital beds in Gaza and supports the delivery of one in three babies. In 2025 alone, we carried out almost 800,000 outpatient consultations and handled more than 100 000 trauma cases. If our registration is renewed, we plan to continue strengthening our activities in 2026. Many of the services provided by MSF are largely unavailable elsewhere in Gaza due to the destruction of the health system.
What is the current situation in Gaza? Is MSF currently working in Gaza?
MSF teams are continuing to provide medical care in 20 healthcare facilitates and medical points in Gaza. MSF plays a vital role in Gaza, supporting one in five hospital beds and assisting one in three mothers during childbirth, operating clinics for people with traumatic injuries and chronic illnesses and treating malnourished children and other patients. We also distributed 700 million litres of water last year. The amount of support we provide is nowhere near sufficient to meet the overwhelming needs in Gaza. In the past few days, all MSF supply and staff movements into Gaza have been refused. MSF continues to engage with Israeli authorities to maintain our vital operations and support a health system that has been largely destroyed.
Israel is stating that MSF didn’t comply with the registration rules, including the provision of staff list to the authorities. Is it true?
Reports that MSF did not comply with registration rules are untrue. MSF applied and actively engaged with the registration process since March 2025 and has already submitted the majority of the required information. For months, neither MSF, nor AIDA – an umbrella group of over 100 NGOs working in Gaza and the West Bank – have received a response to our requests for clarification or engagement. In common with many other NGOs, MSF had concerns about safeguarding around some of the information requested. These concerns are directly linked to our legal responsibilities as an employer.
MSF has repeatedly raised serious concerns and asked for information about the request to share our staff list, particularly in the absence of guarantees regarding the use, security and protection of personal data in a context where humanitarian and healthcare workers are routinely exposed to harassment, detention and direct attacks. MSF has proposed compromises but has not received a response from the ministry.
MSF is committed to finding a solution that allows us to keep providing much-needed humanitarian support to Gaza.
What can MSF do to re-register?
At this stage, MSF focuses on continuing engagement with the authorities to seek re-registration and continue delivering critical humanitarian aid in Gaza and the West Bank. However, we regret that the long-months process has been marked by very limited and delayed feedback. All our attempts to meet with the Ministry of Diaspora
Affairs and Combating Antisemitism have been unsuccessful. The already restricted humanitarian response should not be further dismantled.
What is MSF’s impact in Palestine?
MSF delivers specialized, critical care in Palestine that is largely unavailable elsewhere, including trauma surgery, maternity and neonatal care, burn treatment and mental health services.
In 2025 alone, MSF treated over 100,000 trauma cases, performed 22,700 surgical procedures, managed care for more than 400 beds, supported over 10,000 births, and provided close to 800,000 outpatient consultations. These services depend on Palestinian MSF staff, whose work is essential and cannot be dismissed. Limits on aid deliveries and staffing reflect severe access restrictions, not lack of capacity. Any restriction on MSF’s access would have immediate, devastating consequences for hundreds of thousands of people who depend on this care.
Right now, MSF supports six hospitals (Nasser, Al-Aqsa, Al Helou, Al Ahli, Al Shifa and Al Ranteesi), runs two field hospitals in Deir Al-Balah. We support four primary healthcare centres (PHCC) in Al Mawasi, Al Attar, Khan Yunis and Gaza City, as well as two others. At the request of the Government of Israel, we had made preparations to bring in a third field hospital, however the coordination to enter the hospital was cancelled less than a week before it was supposed to enter. MSF also runs an inpatient feeding centre with 16 beds and has recently opened six new medical points providing wound care and other primary health care services. At the same time, MSF supports a wound care clinic in Deir El Balah and runs one in Gaza City.
Why is MSF speaking out about the conflict in Gaza?
One of the central pillars of our identity is to bear witness and call attention to the problems driving emergency needs in the places where we provide humanitarian assistance.
We have a long history of speaking out and advocacy when governments or other actors implement policies that threaten the health and safety of our patients or our staff, for example in conflicts in Syria, Yemen, and Afghanistan.
International humanitarian law and the rules of war require militaries to distinguish between civilians and combatants and prohibit attacks that cause disproportionate harm to civilians and civilian objects. The way Israel is prosecuting this war is causing massive death and suffering among Palestinian civilians and is inconsistent with these norms and laws.
Medical facilities and their surrounding areas have repeatedly been attacked or subjected to evacuation orders by Israeli forces, making access to healthcare extremely dangerous for patients and putting the lives of medical staff at risk. This compels us to speak out and demand an immediate ceasefire.
Why are your statements so critical of Israel? Why are you not talking about Hamas?
As humanitarians, we grieve for all civilian lives lost, and the vast majority of the victims of this conflict are civilians, including many elderly people, women and children. Violence against civilians is never justified, and all civilians deserve protection.
MSF’s reporting is based on what our patients and staff tell us they are seeing on the ground in Gaza, where the Israeli military campaign and siege have had devastating consequences. The healthcare system has collapsed, and hospitals have run out of drugs, medical supplies, and fuel for generators. People have limited access to food, water, shelter, and electricity. And the death toll continues to rise.
Why is MSF calling for a ceasefire? Aren’t you a non-partisan organization?
We are calling for a sustained ceasefire because widespread and indiscriminate attacks on civilians—including attacks on healthcare—have made it impossible to deliver the humanitarian assistance needed in Gaza.
MSF offers medical humanitarian assistance to people based solely on need, irrespective of race, religion, gender, or political affiliation. As an organization, we focus on filling the greatest gaps in healthcare.
We have no agenda except to go where we are needed and treat patients and we are struggling to do so right now in Gaza due to the lack of drugs, medical supplies and fuel for generators.
How does MSF respond to critiques that it is anti-Israel or anti-Semitic?
MSF takes any allegation of anti-Semitism extremely seriously. At any given time, MSF has approximately 68,000 people working in our projects and headquarters. Any form of bigotry or discrimination by MSF staff is unacceptable.
We do not believe that criticism of Israeli government policies is equivalent to anti-Semitism.
MSF speaks out when governments or actors implement policies that are harmful to the health and safety of our patients or our staff. The way Israel is prosecuting this war is causing massive death and suffering among Palestinian civilians and putting our staff at risk. This is inconsistent with the norms and laws of war.
No state is above criticism.
As humanitarians, we grieve for all civilian lives lost, and the vast majority of the victims of this conflict are civilians, including many elderly people, women, and children. Violence against civilians is never justified, and all civilians deserve protection.
What is MSF’s relationship with Hamas in Gaza?
MSF works with the Ministry of Health in Gaza. We coordinate our work through them. When it comes to ensuring the safety of our teams in Gaza, we maintain contact with the Ministry of Interior in Gaza, just as we maintain contact with the Israeli authorities. MSF works in more than 70 countries around the world. Wherever armed conflict is present, we maintain contact with all actors to safeguard our teams and activities.