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TPS-IL on 12 May, 2024
Chaos at U.S.-Run Gaza Aid Center as Crowds Breach Compound
Jerusalem, 27 May, 2025 (TPS-IL) -- Chaos erupted Tuesday at a U.S.-run humanitarian aid center in Rafah’s Tel Sultan neighborhood, where crowds of Gaza residents broke into the compound and took remaining aid supplies. According to eyewitnesses and media reports, the American team on site—some of them armed—fired into the air as the situation spiraled out of control.
The Gaza Relief Fund, the U.S.-backed organization managing the distribution, said the incident followed long delays caused by “barriers set up by Hamas,” which prevented residents from accessing the site earlier in the day. The organization reported that the crowd grew so large that its team had to “step back” and later withdrew entirely “in a proactive manner” to avoid casualties. “We allowed a small group of residents to receive the aid safely and disperse,” the Fund stated.
Despite conflicting claims, witnesses and sources within the aid organization confirmed that after the withdrawal, Gazans looted the remaining packages.
Roughly 8,000 aid packages were successfully distributed before the breach.
The incident prompted the launch of helicopters and raised concerns about the safety and sustainability of aid distribution efforts in Gaza. The American team reportedly plans to reopen the site on Wednesday.
The initiative is run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a newly formed American entity operating in close coordination with Israeli authorities. The GHF claimed the looting was limited and that distribution resumed.
GHF began operations in Gaza on Monday, sending truckloads of supplies to several secure distribution compounds. A spokesperson said more shipments were en route and promised that the volume of aid would increase daily, though the foundation did not specify exact quantities. Photographs shared by the group showed Gazans collecting the boxes at the sites.
The aid program was conceived by Israel in response to what it sees as repeated failures by the UN and other international bodies to prevent Hamas from intercepting humanitarian supplies. In this new model, only pre-selected family representatives are allowed to access the centers, where they pick up heavy boxes of food in controlled, American-secured zones. The approach marks a shift from the bulk distribution methods previously used, which Israeli officials argue have made it easier for Hamas to seize aid.
“This is a new model,” GHF said. “It’s designed to prevent diversion of aid and build trust directly with the people.”
The distribution system was intentionally minimalist. Recipients did not need to register or pass inspections, an approach GHF said was meant to foster trust despite the potential for abuse, such as individuals collecting aid multiple times. Boxes were laid out on long tables, echoing familiar holiday food drives in the hopes of avoiding scenes of chaos. Each compound is surrounded by high earthen berms and monitored from the air by the Israel Defense Forces, though no Israeli soldiers are present on the ground. The IDF was relying on aerial surveillance and intelligence to ensure the distribution centers’ security.
Since mid-November, Hamas and criminal gangs associated with the terror group have hijacked around 85% of all the trucks entering the Strip carrying food, water, medicine and other humanitarian items. The Press Service of Israel has learned that Hamas has granted distribution lines to these groups to ensure that humanitarian aid exclusively reaches Hamas. In return, these gangs receive money, food and vouchers. Hamas also pays these gangs $10,000 a month to maintain checkpoints.
At least 1,180 people were killed, and 252 Israelis and foreigners were taken hostage in Hamas’s attacks on Israeli communities near the Gaza border on October 7. Of the 59 remaining hostages, 36 are believed to be dead.
