At a time of extraordinary hardship in Gaza, emergency food aid must reach those who need it – securely, directly, and without compromise. That is the mission of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), and I could not be prouder of the dedicated men and women on our team who make that mission a reality every day.
GHF delivered more than 30 million meals directly to Palestinian civilians in its first three weeks of food delivery operations. Every meal was provided safely, without mass diversion, profiteering, or political interference. That scale of impact, in one of the most volatile environments in the world, reflects the strength of our process and the resolve of our people.
We do not expose food delivery to the seizures of Hamas or to any other bad actors with histories of corruption, intimidation, or violence. We understand the hard truths of an emergency and conflict environment and deliver food directly to people. Our operations are simple and clear.
We rely on trusted security partners with carefully trained personnel who work in coordination with the Israeli Defense Forces that control all access to Gazato establish secure humanitarian corridors. Through those corridors, Palestinian civilians reach Secure Distribution Sites where they can directly obtain food for themselves and their families .
Our food aid exceeds international standards for nutrition and quality and is locally sourced. It is culturally appropriate and shelf-stable. Most importantly, it is reaching the people it is meant to serve. There are no middlemen demanding allegiance, no gunmen demanding a cut, no boxes disappearing into warehouses controlled by the very groups responsible for depriving the people of aid for nearly two decades. The success of this process is not abstract. It is measurable, replicable, and tangible.
Despite unprecedented challenges – including Iranian missile attacks, active conflict, and the brutal killing of more than a dozen of our own aid workers – GHF has continued to operate. Some of our wounded team members are still being denied care or freedom of movement in Hamas-controlled medical facilities. In some cases, Hamas has openly threatened both our Palestinian staff and the civilians who line up at our sites. These threats are meant to intimidate, destabilize, and ultimately dismantle one of the few systems that bypasses Hamas’s control and delivers food directly to the people. Yet every day, our trucks are loaded. Our staff arrives ready to work. The work continues because we know what is at stake. We know that food is more than a ration. It is a lifeline.
By contrast, traditional aid delivery efforts in Gaza remain paralyzed. Other aid organizations, despite good intentions, are hemorrhaging supplies. Their trucks are routinely looted at gunpoint, their food diverted, their credibility undermined by repeated compromise with those who weaponize hunger. These failures are not just operational. They are moral. Because every stolen pallet, every lost shipment, every corrupt bargain leaves another person unfed.
GHF is succeeding where others are failing. But we cannot do it alone.
Rather than partnering with us to scale what works, some legacy organizations have chosen to obstruct, deflect, and discredit. We have invited cooperation. We have called on the United Nations and others to work with us and help scale this model to meet the true needs of the people of Gaza. Thus far, our calls have been met with silence – or worse, obstruction.
It is not enough to mean well. Aid groups that continue to operate through failed structures are not merely wasting resources. They are prolonging suffering, and they are feeding the desperation that makes this crisis more dangerous by the day.
To the international aid community, we continue to offer an open hand. If your mission is to deliver aid, then you must have the courage to follow the evidence. We are delivering food. You are losing it. The burden of proof is no longer ours. It is yours.
Ours is a food delivery structure built on accountability, discipline, and impact. It is not perfect, but it is working. Now, we need support to expand it.
The people of Gaza deserve food that reaches them. GHF is proving every day that this is possible. We are not here to seek credit or win arguments – we are here to feed people. That mission should unite us, not divide us.
It is time for the world to stop feeding the problem — and start feeding the people.
John Acree is the interim Executive Director of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF)
