Latest news with #JohnAcree
Middle East Eye
14 hours ago
- Politics
- Middle East Eye
US: Protesters descend on home of GHF's executive director
Several dozen protesters on Friday, calling attention to Israel's starvation of Palestinians in Gaza, made their way to the doorstep of the man running the scandal-plagued and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), demanding the organisation be dismantled. "GHF only aids ethnic cleansing," they chanted as they marched to the home of interim executive director John Acree in Vienna, Virginia, just a half-hour drive from Washington, DC. "Gaza needs medicine, food, and housing," they continued, according to a video shared by the Palestinian Youth Movement advocacy group, and posted to its Telegram account. Protesters draped in keffiyehs banged pots and pans as they gathered on the public sidewalk outside Acree's doorstep and laid out props showcasing GHF food parcels splattered in blood, symbolising more than 1,000 Palestinians - according to the United Nations - who have been gunned down by Israeli forces or American military contractors at four different aid distribution sites in Gaza. The irony was not lost on the crowd when, at one point, a woman opened the door of Acree's home, smiled, and waved at the protesters before picking up what appeared to be a food delivery drop-off. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters Nearly 150 Palestinians have died as a direct result of starvation, Gaza health officials have said. The vast majority of them were young children, given that baby formula is banned by Israel from entering Gaza and is confiscated if brought in by volunteer doctors in their luggage. Rights groups as well as the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah have referred to the GHF sites as "death traps" after videos emerged of what appeared to be a kettling process, whereby military contractors from the US and UK funnelled thousands of Palestinians waiting for aid into narrow fencing that resembled a long cage under the scorching summer sun. As they moved to obtain what they described as meagre rations of rice, oil and pasta, the Israeli military would then open fire on them. Doctors in Gaza have recounted a pattern of gunshots to the groin in young men in particular. GHF began operations in May as the only entity approved by Israel to distribute aid inside Gaza. Israel imposed a total siege there in mid-March and blocked operations by the United Nations Relief Works Agency (Unrwa) and other aid groups such as Anera, despite their decades-long expertise, embedded infrastructure, and trust among locals. Even World Central Kitchen was barred from making hot meals for several months until its slow return on Friday. Despite a mounting death toll and gruesome testimony from survivors, the Trump administration approved $30m in funding for the GHF, even after a report from the now-defunct United States Agency for International Development (USAID) said the plan lacked basic details for an initiative of this scale. Who is John Acree? Acree's career has largely been spent at USAID or USAID-funded initiatives, according to his LinkedIn profile. 'A distraction': Unrwa says Israeli and GHF claims over UN aid delivery are baseless Read More » Since at least 1999, he has mostly worked from the Washington headquarters in project leadership and senior advisory roles, managing what he described as "development" programmes in Afghanistan and Iraq targeting internally displaced and high-risk populations. Acree also served as the point person for the US Department of Defence at USAID in Kabul, and repeatedly talked about building a "civilian-military partnership" with groups such as US special forces in the country. Until USAID was dismantled by President Donald Trump in March, Acree was the head of its regional disaster assistance programme in Costa Rica - a shift from most of his previous work in war zones where the US military was operating. Since May, he appears to be "on site" at GHF's headquarters in Tel Aviv, Israel. In a post he shared on LinkedIn in June, Acree said he accepted the position to be interim leader of GHF because "the needs on the ground would be staggering, and the operational environment would be among the most complex and constrained I've seen in my career". "I've worked in humanitarian emergencies for over two decades. I've seen what happens when systems break down under pressure," he wrote. "But I've also seen what becomes possible when organizations are willing to challenge the status quo - with focus, integrity, and an openness to doing things differently." That difference, however, may have caused far more harm than longstanding aid groups would be willing to risk or tolerate, given that a group of US Senate Democrats is now calling on Trump to defund the GHF. Aside from the $30m provided by the US government, GHF has never disclosed any of its funding sources, and its first executive director resigned before aid distribution even began. " GHF does not control the war," Acree wrote on his LinkedIn account in response to the criticism lobbed at the organisation. "We do not control the borders, the checkpoints, or the broader circumstances in which aid must flow. But we are working within those constraints".
Middle East Eye
16 hours ago
- Politics
- Middle East Eye
Pro-Palestinian protestors campaign outside US home of GHF's executive director
Dozens of members from the Washington, DC, Maryland, and Virginia chapter of the Palestinian Youth Movement, and community members, held a protest on Sunday outside the home of John Acree, executive director of the controversial US and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which is distributing aid in Gaza. More than 1,000 Palestinians seeking aid have been killed by the Israeli military and US contractors since it launched at the end of May. Acree has been accused of committing war crimes. The protestors banged pots and pans, spray-painted GHF aid boxes and a cutout of Acree's face with red paint, and flyered his neighbourhood.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
GHF offers to deliver UN aid for free as aid piles at Kerem Shalom Crossing
The offer comes as international organizations, including the UN, warn of growing hunger in the Palestinian enclave. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) offered to deliver some of the 2,500 tons of food waiting on 950 trucks at the Kerem Shalom Crossing, which the UN has failed to deliver into Gaza, on Wednesday. The offer comes as international organizations, including the UN, warn of growing hunger in the Strip. 'We've been sounding the alarm for weeks on the need for more aid in Gaza while we've seen aid by the UN and other organizations being piled near the borders but not being delivered,' said GHF Interim Director John Acree. 'Our top priority is feeding the people of Gaza, and we're prepared to adjust our supply chains, work with the UN or other teams to organize the packaging and transport, and distribute it to those in need, or we can work with organizations to provide security to ensure food reaches its intended destination. We are ready and able to start today.' Attempts to work with the UN to deliver aid GHF's Executive Chairman Johnnie Moore also wrote to UN Under-Secretary-General Tom Fletcher on Tuesday, asserting that 'Our door remains open. We are prepared to support the safe and accountable delivery of UN aid to Gazans who desperately need it. But time is short. People are starving, and food is sitting idle out of their reach. We cannot let politics stand in the way.' On Wednesday alone, GHF delivered 41 truckloads of aid, which amounted to 2,273,040 officials reportedly promised the IDF earlier this week to make a greater effort to deliver the waiting aid. The UN's failure to deliver aid comes after Hamas and other Palestinian terror groups stole multiple convoys. The Gazan terror leadership has been repeatedly seen stealing humanitarian aid in the enclave and, since the US-backed GHF took over aid distribution, targeting humanitarian workers and sites. The IDF said on Tuesday that there is no famine in Gaza as of yet. A top IDF official met with leading UN bureaucrats regarding the issue on Tuesday, demanding to know how they could accuse Israel of causing famine in Gaza, which, again, has not happened yet but might shortly should the UN continue to abandon its trucks, while simultaneously leaving the aid trucks to sit there without distributing the food. All of this comes amid worldwide media coverage, based on Hamas Health Ministry reports, claiming that 15 Palestinians have died of starvation in the last 24 hours and that 600,000 people in Gaza – nearly one third of the population – are suffering from malnutrition. Yonah Jeremy Bob contributed to this report. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
10-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
US-backed Gaza aid group launches bold new system to deliver food directly to families
EXCLUSIVE – Amid charges that its distribution model forces civilians to travel long distances and pass through military zones, the U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) announced a new initiative on Wednesday to add another layer of security to deliver food aid directly to Gazans in need, without diversion or interference from Hamas. The new system enables community leaders to contact GHF or one of its non-governmental organization (NGO) partners to coordinate local distribution. A GHF team will vet the leader, determine their needs, and set up the initial distribution of food aid. Boxes will be collected by locals at a predetermined location, and GHF will verify that boxes are distributed to aid recipients listed by the community leader. GHF interim Executive Director John Acree told Fox News Digital, "We simply can't keep doing things how they've always been done. Big challenges need new thinking, and I commend our team for continuing to think outside the box as we address pressing humanitarian needs on the ground." People In Gaza Are Thanking Trump For Aid, Leader Of Us-backed Group Says Using this method, GHF partnered with Gazan NGO Al-Amal to successfully deliver some 2,000 boxes of food aid to residents of central Gaza. Though GHF has delivered 67 million meals since beginning operations in May, it has faced criticism over its distribution model, which required Gazans to reach one of four distribution points to receive aid. Read On The Fox News App Critics, including the U.N., UNRWA and other aid groups, have seized on reports that aid recipients have been shot at and even killed by the Israel Defense Forces while seeking GHF aid. The IDF said those reports "are false." Testimonies from Gaza residents, released by Israel's Coordinator for Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), show that "Hamas fires at Gaza residents near the aid distribution sites, spreads false claims about IDF fire, publishes fabricated data about large numbers of casualties, and circulates fake footage," COGAT said. Israel Releases Conversations Of Gaza Residents Amid Criticisms Of Aid Delivery System GHF leaders have also charged Hamas with hoarding humanitarian aid, and selling or using the aid "for coercive purposes." Acree acknowledged that "The Gaza Strip is a dynamic, dangerous environment that requires innovative solutions to get food to those who need it most. This is the latest example of GHF doing exactly that. I am encouraged by the results of this program and proud to work alongside our local NGO partner as we continue to feed the people of Gaza." Netanyahu And Trump To Meet In Dc As Gaza's Fate Without Hamas Is Debated GHF hopes to partner with additional NGOs to expand its delivery service. Its ultimate goal is to distribute over 20,000 boxes of aid – 1.2 million meals – each day throughout Gaza. Despite negative feedback about the GHF model from the UNRWA and NGOs, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke of the important role the new aid system plays in getting Gazans fed. In an exclusive interview with FOX Business' Maria Bartiromo on "Mornings with Maria," on Wednesday, Netanyahu was asked whether he would agree to demands that the U.N. be placed back in charge of humanitarian aid distributions in Gaza. "We have our own distribution system that has been established to prevent Hamas from stealing the food that is supposed to go to the population," Netanyahu replied. "They steal it, they take it for themselves and the remainder, they hike the prices and basically, extort the Palestinian population in order to use it to continue recruiting people to their war machine. "Obviously, we don't want to give up the thing that we began with, which is distribution that goes directly to the people." The U.S. State Department has already approved funding of $30 million for article source: US-backed Gaza aid group launches bold new system to deliver food directly to families
Fox News
09-07-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
US-backed Gaza aid group launches bold new system to deliver food directly to families
EXCLUSIVE - Amid charges that its distribution model forces civilians to travel long distances and pass through military zones, the U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) announced a new initiative on Wednesday to add another layer of security to deliver food aid directly to Gazans in need, without diversion or interference from Hamas. The new system enables community leaders to contact GHF or one of its non-governmental organization (NGO) partners to coordinate local distribution. A GHF team will vet the leader, determine their needs, and set up the initial distribution of food aid. Boxes will be collected by locals at a predetermined location, and GHF will verify that boxes are distributed to aid recipients listed by the community leader. GHF interim Executive Director John Acree told Fox News Digital, "We simply can't keep doing things how they've always been done. Big challenges need new thinking, and I commend our team for continuing to think outside the box as we address pressing humanitarian needs on the ground." Using this method, GHF partnered with Gazan NGO Al-Amal to successfully deliver some 2,000 boxes of food aid to residents of central Gaza. Though GHF has delivered 67 million meals since beginning operations in May, it has faced criticism over its distribution model, which required Gazans to reach one of four distribution points to receive aid. Critics, including the U.N., UNRWA and other aid groups, have seized on reports that aid recipients have been shot at and even killed by the Israel Defense Forces while seeking GHF aid. The IDF said those reports "are false." Testimonies from Gaza residents, released by Israel's Coordinator for Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), show that "Hamas fires at Gaza residents near the aid distribution sites, spreads false claims about IDF fire, publishes fabricated data about large numbers of casualties, and circulates fake footage," COGAT said. GHF leaders have also charged Hamas with hoarding humanitarian aid, and selling or using the aid "for coercive purposes." Acree acknowledged that "The Gaza Strip is a dynamic, dangerous environment that requires innovative solutions to get food to those who need it most. This is the latest example of GHF doing exactly that. I am encouraged by the results of this program and proud to work alongside our local NGO partner as we continue to feed the people of Gaza." GHF hopes to partner with additional NGOs to expand its delivery service. Its ultimate goal is to distribute over 20,000 boxes of aid – 1.2 million meals – each day throughout Gaza. Despite negative feedback about the GHF model from the UNRWA and NGOs, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke of the important role the new aid system plays in getting Gazans fed. In an exclusive interview with FOX Business' Maria Bartiromo on "Mornings with Maria," on Wednesday, Netanyahu was asked whether he would agree to demands that the U.N. be placed back in charge of humanitarian aid distributions in Gaza. "We have our own distribution system that has been established to prevent Hamas from stealing the food that is supposed to go to the population," Netanyahu replied. "They steal it, they take it for themselves and the remainder, they hike the prices and basically, extort the Palestinian population in order to use it to continue recruiting people to their war machine. "Obviously, we don't want to give up the thing that we began with, which is distribution that goes directly to the people." The U.S. State Department has already approved funding of $30 million for GHF.
