Gaza's Aid Crisis: The Failed Militarization of Humanitarian Relief

Summary

Inside Geneva: Gaza's Aid Crisis – The Failed Militarization of Humanitarian Relief

Hosted by Imogen Foulkes and produced by SWI swissinfo.ch, the June 10, 2025 episode of "Inside Geneva" delves deep into the escalating humanitarian crisis in Gaza. The episode examines the complexities and failures surrounding the militarization of aid distribution, focusing particularly on the controversial establishment of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF). Through expert interviews and on-the-ground reports, the podcast provides a comprehensive analysis of the challenges faced by Palestinians in receiving essential aid amidst ongoing conflict.

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1. The Dire Humanitarian Situation in Gaza

The episode opens with a stark portrayal of the severe conditions in Gaza, where over two million people are in desperate need of basic necessities such as food, water, medicine, and shelter. Host Imogen Foulkes highlights the heightened risks faced by Palestinians trying to access aid:

“Palestinians in Gaza say going to new food distribution sites comes with the risk of death.” (00:00)

Key Points:

• Blockade Impacts: Israel's total blockade, lasting over 80 days, severely restricts the entry of essential supplies into Gaza. Although there have been limited allowances for supplies in certain parts of the Strip, the situation remains perilous.
• Casualties from Aid Distribution: Reports document at least 26 Palestinians killed and many more wounded near US-funded aid distribution centers due to Israeli tank fire (01:02).

2. Introducing the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF)

In an attempt to address the blockade and improve aid distribution, Israel and the United States established the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. This organization aims to bypass traditional UN channels, operating initially only in the southern regions of Gaza. However, the initiative has been met with skepticism and criticism from humanitarian experts.

Key Points:

• Operational Challenges: Aid distribution under GHF is militarized, with distribution points guarded by the Israeli Defense Force (IDF), and beneficiaries must undergo screening processes (06:31).
• Screening and Security Risks: The militarized approach raises significant concerns about neutrality, impartiality, and the safety of both aid workers and recipients.

3. Humanitarian Organizations React

Prominent humanitarian leaders express strong opposition to the GHF model, emphasizing that militarizing aid undermines fundamental humanitarian principles.

Notable Quotes:

• Jan Eglund, Head of the Norwegian Refugee Council:

  “This seems to be militarized, politicized, manipulated... it is in violation of basic humanitarian principles.” (00:29, 07:41)

• Chris Lockyer, Secretary General of Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF):

  “It makes aid conditional on political and military aims. It makes starvation a bargaining chip.” (09:45)

Key Points:

• Violation of Humanitarian Principles: Aid agencies stress that neutrality, impartiality, and independence are crucial for effective humanitarian work. The involvement of military forces compromises these values, leading to distrust and potential harm.
• Ineffectiveness of Militarized Aid: Both Eglund and Lockyer argue that previous attempts to militarize aid distribution, such as the US Department of Defense's PIA and food airdrops, have failed to deliver effective assistance (20:19).

4. Incidents and Consequences of GHF Operations

The implementation of GHF has been marred by violence and tragedy, with multiple incidents resulting in casualties among Palestinians seeking aid.

Key Points:

• Violent Encounters: At least 31 people have been killed and over 170 injured when individuals waiting for food aid were shot by Israeli forces near GHF distribution sites (16:32).
• Operational Suspension: Following these tragic events, the GHF suspended its operations, raising questions about the foundation's viability and intentions (15:51).

Notable Quotes:

• Imogen Foulkes:

  “Dozens have been killed... the Foundation suspended work.” (16:34-16:48)

• Chris Lockyer:

  “It wasn't a surprise to see those horrendous images... another act of collective punishment.” (11:39-11:53)

5. Legal and Ethical Implications

Philip Grant, head of Trial International, discusses the potential war crimes associated with GHF’s operations and the legal responsibilities of Switzerland as the host country for the foundation's branch.

Key Points:

• War Crimes Concerns: Grant suggests that if the GHF knowingly facilitated the deportation of civilians or participated in other violations of the Geneva Conventions, those involved could be complicit in war crimes (10:19, 24:18).
• Switzerland's Legal Duty: As the depository state of the Geneva Conventions, Switzerland has an obligation to investigate any activities by the GHF that may violate international humanitarian law (10:19-11:50).

Notable Quotes:

• Philip Grant:

  “If the Gaza Humanitarian foundation... accepted to participate and to lend material aid to the Israeli plan can be construed as complicity in the war crime of forcible displacement of civilian population.” (24:18)

6. The Future of Humanitarian Aid in Gaza

The episode culminates with a call to return to foundational humanitarian principles to effectively address the crisis in Gaza. Jan Eglund emphasizes the importance of neutrality and impartiality, urging international bodies to uphold these standards over politically influenced initiatives.

Key Points:

• Reaffirming Principles: Eglund highlights past instances where compromising humanitarian principles led to increased targeting and suffering, advocating for a recommitment to unbiased aid distribution (27:15).
• Alternative Solutions Needed: The failure of GHF underscores the necessity for alternative strategies that align with established humanitarian frameworks to ensure safe and effective aid delivery.

Notable Quotes:

• Jan Eglund:

  “We cannot allow that to be done just because it's Israel asking for it.” (13:42)

  “It's time to return to those core principles, neutrality, impartiality and independence.” (27:15)

7. Conclusion and Reflections

Imogen Foulkes wraps up the episode by underscoring the complexity of delivering aid in conflict zones and the dire need for solutions that prioritize humanitarian integrity over political and military agendas. The tragic outcomes of the GHF initiative serve as a poignant reminder of the consequences when humanitarian efforts are undermined by conflict dynamics.

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Final Thoughts: "Gaza's Aid Crisis: The Failed Militarization of Humanitarian Relief" provides a sobering examination of the intersection between humanitarian aid and military intervention. Through expert insights and real-world examples, the podcast highlights the essential need for principled, impartial, and neutral approaches to aid distribution in conflict zones to prevent further loss of life and ensure that assistance reaches those most in need.

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For more in-depth discussions on global humanitarian issues, subscribe to "Inside Geneva" wherever you get your podcasts.

Transcript

[Imogen Folks]

Foreign this is Inside Geneva. I'm your host, Imogen folks and this is a production from Swiss Info, the international public media company of Switzerland. In today's program, hunger and fear, Palestinians in Gaza say going to new food distribution sites comes with the risk of death.

[Jan Eglund]

This seems to be militarized, politicized, manipulated. People have to walk long distances through the rubble to get aid.

[Chris Lockyer]

After more than 80 days of a total blockade, Israel has started allowing a.

[Philip Grant]

Limited amount of supplies into some parts of the Strip.

[Chris Lockyer]

This is not child's play. It is not a military operation. It is a different thing that requires years and decades and decades of experience to get where we've got to. Now.

[Imogen Folks]

Reports from Gaza say at least 26.

[Chris Lockyer]

Palestinians have been killed and many more.

[Imogen Folks]

Wounded after Israeli tank fire hit people near a US funded aid distribution center.

[Philip Grant]

It's an utter disaster. The writing was on the wall from quite a long time ago. All of the actors, the UN, the humanitarian agencies, the NGOs, have been saying that from the start, militarizing aid is not going to work. Israeli forces have opened fire again on hungry Palestinians desperate for aid.

[Chris Lockyer]

It breaks my heart to say it, but it wasn't a surprise to see those horrendous images from the first day of operation of the GHF in Gaza.

[Imogen Folks]

Hello and welcome again to Inside Geneva. In today's program, we're going to take a long, hard look at the controversial new aid distribution body, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. I'm sure most, if not all, our listeners know that Gaza's 2 million plus people need aid. Everything from food to water, medicine and shelter. But. But since Hamas's brutal attack on October 7, 2023, there have been disagreements about how that aid should get in and who should deliver it. Israel controls all the entry points to Gaza. UN aid agencies say their supplies are routinely held up or turned away altogether. International journalists aren't allowed into Gaza. So let's begin by talking to someone who does go there regularly. Chris Locke here, Secretary General of Medecin Sans Frontiere or Doctors Without Borders.

[Chris Lockyer]

At the moment we're working in two hospitals supporting in two hospitals that are run by the Ministry of Health. There's Al Aqsa and Nasr Hospital and we've got a field hospital in Deir El Bala and we've got six primary healthcare clinics, all now pretty much in the south. Through them we're doing the surgical support, wound care, physiotherapy, maternity and pediatric care, primary healthcare, vaccination, mental health services, and we're also doing water distribution as well, so it's quite a selection of some quite specialist medical activities. Now we have been moving in and out of facilities and evacuating facilities and moving with people throughout the whole course of this war. And we are now very concentrated in the south of Gaza. North of Gaza is and remains a siege within a siege. And so although on one hand you can look at it as a portfolio of all of the range of services that are needed, there is no way that we and other health providers are providing anywhere near the healthcare that is needed in, in, in Gaza following what has been a systematic destruction of the health system in general. It's time for Hayat to have her wounds treated and bandages changed. An Israeli airstrike did this. Burns cover her arms and back. Israel renewed its blockade of medicine and food entering the Gaza Strip more than two months ago. It's making the treatment of Gaza's many burn victims increasingly hard.

[Imogen Folks]

Getting things in to Gaza. Well, there's been a blockade. Are your supplies blockaded to.

[Chris Lockyer]

Yeah, so we have been like all other agencies, aid agencies, been subjected to this airtight blockade which has been happening since the 3rd of March. It's been essentially been airtight for the longest period since this conflict started. So we along with everybody else are subject to this constraints, this blockade, this siege. And we're having to change the protocols of treatments as a consequence of this. We see it's a longer time between dressing of wounds for patients, which increases infection. We have to be much more stringent in terms of medication, in terms of who we can see. So it's much more restrictive in terms of who we can see and when. And as a consequence, the quality of the care that we can provide diminishes as the stocks diminishes as well. So, yes, absolutely affected. And it's continual walking on a tightrope to be able to maintain just the basic supplies for these services.

[Imogen Folks]

I guess you have regular conversations with Israeli officials. What do you say to them and what do they say to you? Why are they blocking medicines?

[Chris Lockyer]

Well, we are continually putting the case across that there needs to be more aid coming in, more medicines are coming in, more freedom of movement for humanitarian. But more importantly also the fact that the bombing needs to stop, that people need to be allowed to flee, that people need to be safe. And we are continually in conversation with them about these points. Also where we, on a very functional level as well, where we are, where we're moving on a day to day basis to keep our teams, I won't say safe, because nowhere safe in Gaza but to minimize the threat to our teams, both national and so Gazan staff and international staff.

[Imogen Folks]

These are the faces of hunger in Gaza. A crisis affecting hundreds of thousands of people. As Israel's blockade continued and the United nations warned of famine, the United States suddenly announced it had a plan. We're going to help the people of Gaza get some food. People are starving. A US backed aid organization aims to start work in the Gaza Strip by the end of May, repeating Israel's reason for blocking aid, that Hamas is still stealing it. The US and Israel came up with a new body, the Gaza Humanitarian foundation, which would bypass the un. It would at first at least work only in the south. So people would have to walk to distribution points to get aid. They would be screened and the distribution points would be guarded by the Israeli Defence Force. Immediately, long standing aid workers were sceptical. Jan Eglund is head of the Norwegian Refugee Council, but he is also a former head of the UN's Emergency Humanitarian Coordination Office or OCHA, and he led the UN's task force for Syria.

[Jan Eglund]

Well, we would welcome anything that would allow us to resume work for a population that is starving and that has been suffocated by a siege over two months. But this seems to be militarized, politicized, manipulated. People have to walk long distances through the rubble to get aid. And it is then some kind of a military scheme that decides whom will get it, how they will get it and if they will get it. So it is in violation of basic humanitarian principles.

[Imogen Folks]

Well, some people might say forget about the humanitarian principles. There's 2.2 million people in need there. Israel, for whatever reason, doesn't want to have the the UN and other aid agencies unfettered. Surely aid is needed. This is a start. This is better than nothing.

[Jan Eglund]

Well, but it's very inferior to the obvious solution, which is to lift the blockade. We had a system working for many, many weeks. All of the UN agencies, we and the non governmental organizations, the Red Cross and Red Crescent, reach all families in Gaza in an effective and efficient manner.

[Imogen Folks]

In Nuserat, every family had sent a young man to see if they could get bread. During the ceasefire, 600 trucks of food entered Gaza every day. Fewer than 100 after an 11 week blockade is nowhere near, near enough. The core principles of humanitarian work are neutrality, impartiality and independence. Aid agencies help those in need, regardless of who they are, and they don't work with the military. Jan Eglund's questions were shared by many aid workers, UN agencies and Eglin's successor as UN Humanitarian Coordinator. Tom Fletcher said they would not work with the new foundation.

[Chris Lockyer]

It makes aid conditional on political and military aims. It makes starvation a bargaining chip.

[Imogen Folks]

Meanwhile, other groups had questions too. The foundation seemed quite mysterious. It was registered in both the United States and Switzerland. Philip Grant, head of Trial International, a group of international lawyers who keep their eye on possible war crimes to, told me that Switzerland had a duty to ensure the foundation was legal and above board.

[Philip Grant]

Well, the Gaza Humanitarian foundation is such a murky undertaking, such a shady organization with a headquarter in the US And a branch in Switzerland. Our job was to make sure that any activities that might have been undertaken from Switzerland was done in respect of the Geneva Conventions. Switzerland has a particular duty first as the depository state of the Geneva Conventions, but as any other state, to make sure that IHL international humanitarian law is respected. But they also must ensure respect from any legal entity based on its territory. So our submissions to the Swiss authorities was to ask them to investigate whether the foundation had indeed any dealing with this plan, at least from its branch in Switzerland, and if so, if they undertook everything not to violate international humanitarian law, and also on the side, if they have respected Swiss law with regards to the hiring of the private military contractors.

[Imogen Folks]

That's an interesting point. You say that Switzerland does have the duty to ensure compliance with the law because it's very difficult to find out, particularly the branch in Switzerland, who is even there, who is even in charge. Do the Swiss authorities even have a clear picture? It doesn't seem a very transparent organization.

[Philip Grant]

No, it is not. We don't know who is part of the Foundation. Yeah, indeed. I mean, the sole Swiss member and the auditing firm have resigned. It seems today pretty clear now that anything that might have taken place in Switzerland is in the process of being shut down and everything repatriated to the U.S. now, it doesn't mean the authorities can just take that into account and say we don't have a duty anymore to investigate. We do think there is still an obligation to make sure anything that might have been contrary to the Geneva Conventions, including the possible participation in a plan to deport people from northern Gaza to the to the south, should be investigated by Swiss authorities.

[Imogen Folks]

In Khan Younis, children rushed to a place where they'd heard there was hot soup. They scrambled for the scrapings. Israel's justification for bypassing the United nations and supporting the foundation is its claim that UN supplies are being looted or even going straight to Hamas. The the UN has rejected this, pointing out that during the ceasefire earlier this year, when 600 trucks of aid were getting into Gaza each day, supplies were distributed across Gaza to those in need.

[Chris Lockyer]

Gazans are risking death in the search for life saving aid.

[Imogen Folks]

A desperate crowd ransacks the United nations.

[Chris Lockyer]

Warehouse, tearing down metal walls and carrying off anything they can find.

[Imogen Folks]

A World Food Program warehouse was stormed by desperate Palestinians after weeks of blockade in late May. But when I asked them, both jan Eglund and MSF's Chris Lockyer dismissed the idea that looting was a major problem.

[Jan Eglund]

It's a myth that there is aid diversion. The Israelis have not brought that up with the UN with any evidence. So let's use a system that is proven through the last 100 years in all conflict zones and let's not do something that we have refused when, when the Houthis asked for it, when Assad asked for it, when the armed groups in Africa ask for it. We cannot allow that to be done just because it's Israel asking for it.

[Chris Lockyer]

We have no evidence of that. We would say directly to the Israeli authorities, put that evidence on the table. We have essentially, as part of bringing stuff into Gaza, there is a negotiation, a screening by the Israeli authorities, and then when it comes into Gaza, it's handed over to us and we haven't been looted.

[Imogen Folks]

You've never had any of your supplies, medical supplies, looted in Gaza.

[Chris Lockyer]

We can guarantee that our supplies are medical supplies and aid that MSF is bringing is going directly to the population. Looking broadly, diversion of aid is a common concern in conflict zones and humanitarians have learned to minimize the risks. It's not in our interests, it's not in the interests of the population that we're trying to serve. So while it's impossible to avoid it completely, looking at the catastrophic situation that we have in Gaza today, there is absolutely no justification in terms of using this as a tool against the population. You know, there is no justifiable reason why that should happen. And especially in the current context of occupation and the ongoing campaign of ethnic cleansing, it constitutes yet another act of collective punishment.

[Imogen Folks]

Israel had said it wanted to control.

[Chris Lockyer]

The way aid got to Palestinians in Gaza from hubs like this one in the far south. Day one of that plan didn't survive contact with reality.

[Imogen Folks]

One day before the GHF was due to start work, its boss, former US Marine Jake Wood, one of the very few people identified as working for the organization, resigned, saying he would not abandon humanitarian principles. Still, the foundation got going, opening one small food distribution point. Problems, fatal, catastrophic problems were there from the start. At least 31 people have been killed and more than 170 others injured when Palestinians waiting for food aid were shot.

[Philip Grant]

At by the Israeli Defence Force in Gaza.

[Imogen Folks]

Witnesses say the troops Palestinians walked miles to get aid and multiple eyewitnesses say were shot at by Israeli forces, by tanks and by drones. Dozens have been killed. Doctors working at the local hospital, supported by the International Committee of the Red Cross, described the scenes as utter carnage. Trial International's Philip Grant.

[Philip Grant]

Again, it's an utter disaster. And I think the writing was on the wall from quite a long time ago. All of the actors, the UN, the humanitarian agencies, the NGOs, have been saying that from the start, militarising aid is not going to work. It might make the situation worse and there are alternatives. The trucks are ready to come in. The occupying power has the obligation to let in humanitarian aid. There's been a blockade for the better part of now, almost three months, and that is for Israel to put an end to that and to open its borders as soon as possible for aid to come in. The Gaza Humanitarian foundation and its participation in the distribution of aid. Yeah, it's a natural disaster. There's been already, a few days into the scheme, two big massacres. Today. It's just been announced that they will suspend their operations, at least for a day. Unfortunately, it's not a surprise. The horror show continues.

[Imogen Folks]

Dozens of the injured were taken to several hospitals where they were treated by a British surgeon. As you can see behind me, we've got all the bays are full and.

[Chris Lockyer]

They'Re all gunshot wounds. It's absolute carnage here.

[Imogen Folks]

And there are even more people in the main emergency department as the first foundation tried to continue its work, setting up one or two more distribution points. MSF's Chris Lockyer was watching.

[Chris Lockyer]

My. My heart sank when I saw those images. I mean, it's yet another example of utter chaos in. In Gaza and another illustration of the desperate situation that people are finding themselves in because of the level of malnutrition, the level of hunger, the needs in Gaza. You know, there's a reason why humanitarians work according to a set of principles. There is a huge amount of practical necessity in terms of the principles of neutrality, impartiality and independence. Impartiality is about ensuring that the aid and a humanitarian assistance goes to the people who most need it, and the right aid goes to those people. And neutrality is ensuring that it's delivered to by organizations and people who are not party to the conflict. As soon as you are party to the conflict, you can be accused or actually weaponize. Politicize, use the aid for your military gains. And then you're getting into complex questions of trust, of access to people, security risks to both the humanitarian organizations and more importantly, to the population themselves, which is what we saw in the first day of the Gaza Humanitarian foundation becoming, well, attempting to become operational in Gaza. And so, in a sense, I don't think I'm alone in saying that I was tragically not surprised to see how this was playing out.

[Imogen Folks]

So Israel and the United States would say that they are trying to solve this problem with the Foundation.

[Chris Lockyer]

There's been other recent examples of such militarized and politicized attempts to provide aid in Gaza, and they've all failed. There was the PIA that was set up by the US Department of Defense. Not only was it physically not able to live up to the job, but it also wasn't trusted. The distribution questions were there when it came to bringing stuff in through the piercing. There was also the failed attempts to bring food in via airdrops, which were also catastrophically dangerous, dehumanizing, putting a lot of food dropping into the sea. None of these initiatives have so far succeeded to bring in aid. Only the humanitarian organizations and the UN have done so so far. And that's because I would argue very strongly the principled approach on one hand, but also the experience. This is not child's play. It is not a military operation. It is a different thing that requires years and decades and decades of experience to get where we've got to now. So it breaks my heart to say it, but it wasn't a surprise to see those horrendous images from the first day of operation of the GHF in Gaza.

[Imogen Folks]

As Gazans buried their dead. There were more resignations at the foundation, including the Boston Consulting Group, which had agreed a contract with GHF to help establish aid distribution. At this point, listeners may be asking why I haven't interviewed the foundation itself. Well, that's because it's still hard to know exactly who they are or how to contact them. There is an email address, but no named contact. I've had one answer to my questions to the Foundation. I'll read it to you now, word for word. The GHF has delivered more than 7 million meals since last Tuesday. We haven't had any incident at or within the surrounding vicinity of our sites. We don't have any jurisdiction outside of our designated sites. We'll have to ask IDF on those incidents. A pretence of aid. That's how a UN spokesman has described the US and Israeli backed food distribution operation in Gaza. The comments coming as aid centres in Gaza are closed today with growing calls.

[Chris Lockyer]

For an independent investigation into the killings.

[Imogen Folks]

Of dozens of people.

[Chris Lockyer]

People.

[Imogen Folks]

So since there are more than 2 million people in Gaza, I guess those 7 million meals won't last that long. One day after I got that email, when yet more people had been killed at or close to a distribution site, the GHF suspended work. Temporarily or permanently? We're not right now, quite sure. Interestingly, their email is careful not to deny the that shootings and deaths took place. It only says they didn't happen in, or perhaps very, very close to their designated areas. The idf, it hints, might know more. Let's go back to Philip Grant again, and just for background, his organization, Trial International, has successfully gathered information that has led to prosecutions and convictions of those who have committed war crimes, including Liberian warlord Alia Kozaya, who, after seeking asylum in Switzerland, was sentenced by the Swiss criminal court to 20 years in prison for major violations of international law. Philip Grant suggests those who work for the GHF should think about what they may have participated in.

[Philip Grant]

Yes, we've indeed investigated a number of cases that have ended up with convictions in numerous countries, not just in Switzerland. And it's our role in particular, when there's a possibility that violations happen from the Swiss territory to investigate cases. And eventually at some point we will know in the future if the Gaza Humanitarian foundation is party to a particular grave breach of the Geneva Conventions to possibly bring the case before the authorities. I'm not saying we will, but we'll keep an eye on what is happening and unfolding. I think what is important to remember is that if the Gaza Humanitarian foundation, at least its leadership, was aware of an Israeli plan to deport illegally a civilian population from the north of Gaza to the south where the distribution centers were set up. And it seems more and more likely that there was such a plan. But let's use the conditional right. If the Gaza Humanitarian foundation and those who set it up and were running it knew of that plan and through this scheme, this distribution aid program accepted to participate and to lend material aid to the Israeli plan can be construed as complicity in the war crime of forcible displacement of civilian population. And that would entail, first of all, the possibility for any state, almost any state in the world, to use universal jurisdiction if one of the members of the Gaza Humanitarian foundation was to travel, let's say, to a European country. And secondly, it doesn't have any statutes of limitations. So people could be facing accountability for decades to come.

[Chris Lockyer]

For a third day running, people were.

[Imogen Folks]

Killed around an aid distribution site run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. This militarized system is endangers lives and violates international standards on aid distribution, as the United nations has repeatedly warned. Well, as many of our listeners will know, the law, especially when it comes to possible war crimes, moves pretty slowly. But the ill fated Gaza Humanitarian foundation is certainly a case to watch. So where do we go from here in getting aid into Gaza? Jan Eglund, with his long years of experience in humanitarian work, has watched the developments with dismay. It's time, he says, to return to those core principles, neutrality, impartiality and independence.

[Jan Eglund]

We saw in Afghanistan and we saw in Iraq that we were too close to the NATO countries, to the American military operation and it cost us in the civilian population and we became targeted. But listen, we have been good in resisting this. We were asked as NSC in Gaza in 2015 by Hamas to aid some people and not others. We refused work immediately. They invaded our offices and after a standoff they came back and said, okay, we will let you work according to your basic principles. Why on earth would we let Israel do what we refused to do when Hamas pushed us?

[Imogen Folks]

Going back to this 14 page plan, the organizers of it, which seem to be Israel and the United States have appeared to approach former UN officials, aid agency chiefs to take part. I'm just wondering, did they approach you?

[Jan Eglund]

No, not approached us. And I'm glad you see there is a unanimous rejection of something would be militarized, politicized, manipulated. We cannot end 100 years old tradition of giving aid according to needs and needs alone. On the other hand, of course we're keen to discuss can we become better? Could the logistic chains become better? Could we become even more efficient? Could there be cost efficiency matters, could we reach people even more directly, et cetera? Can we explain our monitoring, evaluation, etc. Better to the donors? All of that is, we're always eager to discuss that and we hope that we now hope to see Europe and the United nations and those who are there to defend international law, to stand up for principle as they did when Assad were besieging the cities. You will remember that I led the work to get aid in to these areas where there were some very radical Islamist men with beards, similar to what we have in in Gaza. And the Europeans and the Americans and others were outraged of that besiegement. How come they're not equally outraged now when Israel is besieging 2 million Palestinians, including where half of them are children and totally innocent.

[Imogen Folks]

And that brings us to the end of this edition of Inside Geneva. We know the issue of aid to Gaza has aroused horror, anger, dismay and confusion. We always welcome feedback from our listeners. So do write to us at Inside genevaissinfo Ch. And here's a heads up. Over the summer, we'll be reviving our series of summer profiles on Inside Geneva with all sorts of of interesting people, including an international lawyer who hopes to become a judge at the International Court of Justice.

[Philip Grant]

From the moment when I first studied international law, I knew that that was what I wanted to do at the time I looked at it, and I still do actually, as a framework within which states, and by extension people in states could live together on the basis of a framework that provides predictability, stability and justice.

[Imogen Folks]

Join us starting in July for our series of summer profiles. A reminder, you've been listening to Inside Geneva, a Swiss info production. You can subscribe to us and review us wherever you get your podcasts. Check out our previous episodes how the International Red Cross Unites Prisoners of War with Their Families or why Survivors of Human Rights Violations Turn to the UN in Geneva for Justice. I'm Imogen folks, thanks again for listening. What would you do to protect your family? Becoming a parent definitely is a very emotional thing. How far would you go to protect them from future disease? You suddenly care about something more than you care about yourself. And we live in a world that is filled with things that can go wrong. And we what if there was a solution? From the second your child is born.

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