Israel’s High Court of Justice has allowed some of the world’s largest aid groups to continue operating in the Gaza Strip, a decision that affects Médecins Sans Frontières, Oxfam, the Danish Refugee Council, and 34 other organizations in the territory.

The move followed a petition filed by 19 of those organizations this week, challenging an earlier Israeli government decision to bar aid groups that refuse to comply with the country’s new registration rules.

Those rules would have required organizations to provide the Israeli government with detailed information about their staff, funding, and operations, and would also have disqualified those that denied the existence of Israel, expressed support for legal proceedings against Israelis, and called for boycotts of the country itself.

Dozens of organizations refused to comply with those requirements — and because of that, many were poised to lose access to the Gaza Strip on March 1, 2026. The court’s Friday decision temporarily paused that ban, and noted that hearings on the topic will follow.

“We are grateful that our request for an interim order has been agreed. Although this news is positive, the humanitarian situation in Gaza remains critical and we don’t yet know what effect this ruling will have,” said Bushra Khalidi, Oxfam’s policy lead based in Ramallah. “When the court issues its final decision on the petition submitted by Oxfam and others, we hope it recognizes the very real threat to civilian lives and upholds humanitarian principles and international law.”

Despite a ceasefire brokered by the United States last October, shelling and gunfire continue to shatter the Gaza Strip. During the first month of 2026, UNICEF reported that nearly 40 children had been killed across the territory — and from October 2023 until today, Gaza’s Ministry of Health reports the death toll from the war now tops 72,000.

Nearly all of Gaza’s 2.1 million residents are reliant on humanitarian aid, with at least two-thirds of the population living in 1,000 displacement sites, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. The vast majority of those sites consist of makeshift tents on open land.

Read the full article about groups providing aid to Gaza by Elissa Miolene at Devex.