Decolonise MSF

We exist to abolish all forms of discrimination at Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), and to empower labour towards this goal.

[Yipeng Ge 葛义朋 @yipengGe]

It doesn’t have to be this way. In December 2025, Israel demanded that 37 humanitarian organizations operating in Gaza hand over their staff lists, otherwise they would be forced to cease operations in 60 days. Reportedly, 23 organizations including @MSF intend to comply.

[Al Jazeera English @AJEnglish]

"Staff are extremely concerned for their wellbeing and futures."

The medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) says it'll hand over details of its Palestinian staff to Israel, which killed more than 1,700 health workers during the Gaza genocide.

🔗: https://t.co/iNMMOSeeG2

[Doctors Against Genocide @docstopgenocide]

On Medicine, Access and Responsibility: Reflections with Dr. Ghassan Abu Sitta and Colleagues https://t.co/zvsU2LnLww

[Yipeng Ge 葛义朋 @yipengGe]

"We understand MSF’s determination to remain present and continue delivering medical care in Gaza. That intention is legitimate and important.

However, the cost of the approach currently being considered - sharing a list of staff with Israeli authorities - appears too high, first and foremost for Palestinian colleagues in Gaza, but also for MSF as an organisation, for other NGOs, and for the humanitarian sector more broadly.

In this context, there is no meaningful possibility of informed consent for Palestinian staff. The degree of coercion and need is such that consent cannot be considered free, informed, or voluntary. We should stop presenting it as though it is.

We should also be clear-eyed about the environment in which this demand is being made. Israeli authorities are responsible for the ongoing genocide of the Palestinian people and have vilified MSF in recent months in an unprecedented manner. This is not an administrative formality; it is part of a broader system of control, coercion, and restriction that has directly undermined humanitarian action and placed staff at risk. Interpreting minimal or performative acknowledgements (such as a WhatsApp confirmation of receipt) as a sign of good faith is not an adequate basis for accepting such measures.

By complying, MSF risks creating a precedent that will be used to normalise similar demands across organisations. It will make it easier for authorities to impose this on others - and harder for any humanitarian actor to refuse. We will also be putting the reputation of MSF (and what is it willing to accept) in jeopardy and really put in the balance our ability to operate and ensure staff safety in Somalia, Yemen, Iran and many other countries.

Ultimately, sharing even a partial list of staff is not proportionate to the operational gain it is expected to deliver. It is unlikely to enable safe, effective operations in Gaza, and it risks violating both the spirit and intent of the Gaza IGA motion. As a movement, we are bound by that framework, and it is essential that operational decision-making reflects it."

- Current Palestinian MSF Staff

[Yipeng Ge 葛义朋 @yipengGe]

"I would’ve preferred if the organisation stood behind its principles and decided to leave instead of making such a compromise. The consultative process they are claiming, is unethical. You simply can’t ask people who are living a genocide to decide between getting aid or being exploited and targeted."

[Decolonise MSF @DecoloniseMsf]

Managed Suffering: @MSF is a classic example of a humanitarian alibi.

@GhassanAbuSitt1
@yipengGe

[MSF International @MSF]

Israel has knowingly given MSF and our Palestinian colleagues an impossible choice: either we provide staff information or abandon hundreds of thousands of Palestinians who need vital medical care.

To continue providing aid in Gaza and the West Bank, MSF has informed Israeli authorities that we are prepared to share a defined list of Palestinian staff and international staff names, subject to clear parameters with staff safety at the core. This is an exceptional measure. This follows extensive discussions with our Palestinian colleagues and would only be carried out with the express agreement of the individuals concerned.

Our priority remains the safety of our staff while continuing to provide essential healthcare to those in dire need: https://t.co/PcRcX9tUNM

[Decolonise MSF @DecoloniseMsf]

@GhassanAbuSitt1 @yipengGe

[Decolonise MSF @DecoloniseMsf]

So apparently the famous @MSF middle management told the Palestinian national staff that they either allow their data to be submitted, or they would their jobs if MSF leaves.

This is not a consultation, this is coercion.

This is not a dilemma, but a bureaucratic convenience.

[Yipeng Ge 葛义朋 @yipengGe]

More testimonies about @MSF's decision to capitulate to Israel's demands for their staff lists and information. (@DecoloniseMsf)

[Decolonise MSF @DecoloniseMsf]

This is not neutrality. This is Complicity.

- Palestinian MSF staff member

[Decolonise MSF @DecoloniseMsf]

We've been saying this all along. MSF is an institutionally racist organisation. And nothing has changed in the last six years.

https://t.co/6Lr3j5izpa

[Ghassan Abu Sitta, Chair of Conflict Medicine AUB @GhassanAbuSitt1]

A natural consequence of MSF's institutional racism. The racial hierarchy that exists between the European "volunteers" and what is euphemistically refered to as "local staff". Brown, institutionally disempowered and in the case of the 15 Palestinian "local staff" killed by Israel, ungreavable.

[Decolonise MSF @DecoloniseMsf]

The power analysis systematically documents the euro-centred power dynamics within the organisation.

https://t.co/SM2O2XHdCw

[Decolonise MSF @DecoloniseMsf]

The power analysis systematically documents the euro-centred power dynamics within the organisation.

https://t.co/SM2O2XHdCw

[Decolonise MSF @DecoloniseMsf]

@MSF. You listening?

#GazaGenocide #CallOutGenocide

[INGO Staff Alliance For Palestine @staff4palestine]

You received a petition endorsed by over 3000 individuals, https://t.co/gPzXGNZmBc. It urges you to elevate your efforts in fulfilling your mandate as a human rights organization. #GazaGenocide #CallOutGenocide @Oxfam @dhnnjyn

[Decolonise MSF @DecoloniseMsf]

@MSF. You listening?

[INGO Staff Alliance For Palestine @staff4palestine]

You received a petition endorsed by over 3000 individuals, https://t.co/gPzXGNZmBc. It urges you to elevate your efforts in fulfilling your mandate as a human rights organization. #GazaGenocide #CallOutGenocide @Oxfam @dhnnjyn

[INGO Staff Alliance For Palestine @staff4palestine]

Colleagues across aid organizations are reporting resistance from management to the use of #Genocide_of_Palestinians and #EthnicCleansingOfPalestine.
We say to humanitarian leaders: #wordsmatter
Here is why⬇️

[Decolonise MSF @DecoloniseMsf]

Silence of INGOs on Palestine exposes the bias of White Saviourist bosses living comfortable lives in the global north. Speak out. Join the revolution now ✊🏿✊🏾✊🏽✊🏼✊🏻

https://t.co/EgudEzaBkW

[INGO Staff Alliance For Palestine @staff4palestine]

We refuse to be part of a system that fails the people of #Gaza. Staff from 57 international organizations endorsed the statement of the Staff Alliance https://t.co/s4AlELjnzP calling on their leadership: Align with your principles, act NOW!
Stop the #Genocide_of_Palestinians

[Decolonise MSF @DecoloniseMsf]

Yep! Very similar to MSF DEI panels these days. Mostly noise, very little impact.

[Amy Charlotte Kean @keano81]

Woman who speaks on DEI panels for a living without ever really saying anything