Doctors Without Borders said in a statement that it has suspended non-critical medical activities at Nasser Hospital in Gaza’s Khan Younis due to the presence of armed men at the medical facility and “a recent situation of suspicion of movement of weapons.”
The aid group said that armed men have additionally been arresting patients.
MSF’s statement appeared to mark the first time that an international humanitarian group in Gaza has publicly reported the presence of armed men in a hospital or the possible use of such a facility for moving weapons.
“In recent months, in Nasser hospital in Khan Younis, patients and MSF personnel have seen armed men, some masked, in different areas of the large compound of the hospital. This had not been in areas where MSF has activities, but in other parts of the hospital compound,” Doctors Without Borders, also known by its French acronym MSF, said in the statement explaining its decision to halt work at the Nasser Hospital since January 20.
MSF has been a key provider of medical and humanitarian aid in Gaza since the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attacks in southern Israel triggered a two-year war in the enclave. Israel and Hamas agreed to a US-brokered ceasefire in October, though both sides have repeatedly accused each other of violations.
“With an uptick since the ceasefire, MSF teams have reported a pattern of unacceptable acts, including the presence of armed men, intimidation, arbitrary arrests of patients, and a recent situation of suspicion of movement of weapons,” the humanitarian organization said. “These incidents pose serious security threats to our teams and patients.”
An MSF representative told Reuters the organization continued to support some critical services at Nasser Hospital, including inpatient and surgical care for certain patients requiring lifesaving treatment.
A Palestinian woman arrives with a child at the Doctors Without Borders or Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) clinic, in the al-Rimal neighborhood of Gaza City on December 31, 2025. (Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)
The Hamas-run Interior Ministry said in a statement it was committed to preventing any armed presence inside hospitals, and that legal action would be taken against violators. It suggested that armed members of certain Gazan families had recently entered hospitals, but did not identify those involved.
Israel has repeatedly offered evidence of medical facilities’ regular use by Palestinian terror groups as bases of operations due to their protected status. Hostages have also said they were held at Nasser Hospital.
Last year, a doctor, who also serves as a spokesperson for Nasser Hospital, hinted that he had been threatened by Palestinian Islamic Jihad due to his refusal to let the terror group’s operatives enter and use the hospital.
Israel announced earlier this month that it was terminating all MSF’s activities in Gaza and the West Bank after it failed to provide a list of its Palestinian staff.
MSF slammed the move, which takes effect on March 1, as a “pretext” to obstruct aid. Israel has previously accused MSF of having at least two employees who held membership in the Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hamas terror groups.
Palestinian patients leave the Doctors Without Borders or Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) clinic, in the al-Rimal neighborhood of Gaza City on December 31, 2025. (Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)
Oxfam sued for “toxic antisemitic culture”
The scrutiny of MSF comes amid broader criticism of international aid organizations’ conduct regarding the Gaza conflict.
This week, the former CEO of Oxfam GB announced she is suing the charity, alleging a “toxic antisemitic culture” and claiming she faced pressure to prematurely use the term genocide to describe Israel’s military campaign.
“Because to use the word genocide, it has to be something that we arrive at with consultation and evidence and good legal advice,” Halima Begum told Channel 4 News. “And to try and use that term before we’re ready as an organization feels quite risky to me.”
“Essentially, it was very hard to hold on to neutrality and impartiality,” she added. “And I say that as a Muslim woman,”
In a statement to Channel 4 News, Oxfam GB said it refutes Begum’s allegations.
Oxfam works in over 70 countries, helping people in developing countries out of poverty and providing emergency aid during humanitarian crises.
Mark Goldring resigned as CEO of Oxfam GB in 2018 following revelations that the charity’s aid workers used sex workers while in Haiti following a 2010 earthquake. The British government halted funding for Oxfam in 2021 after it reported it had suspended staff members in the Democratic Republic of Congo over claims of sexual misconduct and bullying.
