MSF on Gaza airdrops: 'Futile initiative that smacks of cynicism'
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MSF denounces Gaza airdrops as a deadly charade that puts Palestinians at risk, calling them a distraction from "Israel’s" blockade and mass starvation campaign.
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Humanitarian aid is airdropped to Palestinians over Gaza City, Gaza Strip, Monday, July 28, 2025 (AP)
Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has condemned the ongoing reliance on airdrops as a means of delivering humanitarian aid to Gaza, calling the strategy “futile,” “cynical”, and dangerous for Palestinians trapped in a worsening crisis of hunger and forced displacement.
As famine looms and humanitarian agencies sound alarm bells, MSF is calling for the immediate opening of overland aid routes to ensure food, medicine, and essential supplies reach those in need. Jean Guy Vataux, MSF’s emergency coordinator in Gaza, issued a sharp rebuke of the airdrop approach in a statement published on X.
Jean Guy Vataux is our Emergency Coordinator in Gaza. He describes why airdrops of aid are not the most effective method for delivering aid.
— MSF International (@MSF) July 28, 2025
“Using airdrops for the delivery of humanitarian aid is a futile initiative that smacks of cynicism. The roads are there, the trucks are… pic.twitter.com/PtAmz3khDW
“Using airdrops for the delivery of humanitarian aid is a futile initiative that smacks of cynicism,” Vataux said. “It is not a matter of lacking resources or logistics. The roads are there. The trucks are there. The food and medicine are just a few kilometers away. What’s missing is political will.”
Roads exist, but access is blocked
Vataux stressed that effective humanitarian delivery could begin immediately if Israeli authorities were to lift restrictions and facilitate coordination. “All that is needed is for Israeli authorities to decide to facilitate its arrival, expedite the clearance procedures, allow the entry of goods at scale, and coordinate to permit safe collection and delivery,” he stressed.
While global powers promote airdrops as a stopgap measure, MSF and other humanitarian groups argue that this approach obscures the core issue: "Israel’s" ongoing blockade of overland access and refusal to allow humanitarian corridors to operate at scale.
Danger to Palestinians in Gaza’s crowded South
MSF also warned that airdrops present grave risks to Palestinians, particularly in Gaza’s southern region, where nearly two million people are squeezed into just 12 percent of the territory. In such overcrowded conditions, miscalculations in drop zones can be lethal.
“Airdrops are notoriously ineffective and dangerous,” Vataux emphasized. “If anything lands in this area, people will inevitably be injured.”
The organization also flagged the ethical peril of aid falling into areas from which “Israel” has previously ordered evacuations. “This would force civilians to enter militarized zones to access basic food and supplies, again exposing them to danger and displacement,” MSF said.
Call for immediate overland humanitarian access
As the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza intensifies, international pressure is mounting on "Israel" to lift its restrictions and allow meaningful, coordinated aid delivery through established roadways. Human rights organizations and UN bodies have echoed MSF’s assessment: airdrops may generate headlines, but they do not address the scale or urgency of the crisis.
“Road access is the only viable way to confront the growing crisis of starvation and malnutrition,” Vataux concluded. “Anything less is not just inadequate, it is a deliberate choice to prolong suffering.”
Jordan, UAE assist IOF with dropping symbolic aid over Gaza
Despite previous failures and worldwide condemnations over the inefficiency and danger of airdrops, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan, which have made no tangible effort to break the siege on Gaza or end the genocide, in coordination with the Israeli occupation forces, carried out another round of so-called humanitarian aid deliveries to the Gaza Strip on Monday.
According to the Israeli occupation military engaged in genocide, 20 pallets of aid were airlifted to both northern and southern Gaza. The operation, directed by the Israeli political echelon and supervised by COGAT, is part of what the Israeli military claims is an effort to “improve the humanitarian response.”
However, rights advocates and humanitarian experts argue that these measures are both insufficient and deceptive, offering symbolic relief while allowing the continued siege and destruction of Gaza to persist.
With nearly 60,000 Palestinians killed, mass displacement, and a decimated health system, Gaza’s population faces one of the most dire humanitarian crises in modern history. Airdrops, known for their imprecision and risk to civilians, have failed repeatedly to deliver consistent aid. In many cases, falling pallets have caused injury or death.
Meanwhile, aid has been dropped mainly over zones inaccessible to Palestinians, near Israeli occupation posts, rendering these operations pointless. While the Israeli siege continues and land-based aid is restricted, the token airdrops allow the occupation and regional actors to perform a humanitarian role they systematically undermine.
