On July 22, 2025, Arab Organisation for Human Rights in the UK (AOHR UK) submitted a request to Ms. Kaya Kallas, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, calling for urgent sanctions under the global human rights sanctions regime against officials of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) and the managers of private security companies contracted with it, due to their active contribution to the ongoing genocide. These individuals have established aid distribution centres in the southern Gaza Strip, which have proven to be mere “kill traps” and a tool of humiliation for civilians.
AOHR UK added that the request focused specifically on the members of the board of directors of GHF and managers of the contracting security companies who bear full and direct responsibility for all crimes committed since May 27, 2025, both inside or around the aid distribution centres. The request included the names of six individuals identified as planners, executers, and supervisors of this deadly model, including: Johnny Moore Jr., Executive Director of the Foundation (United States); David Papazian, Chairman of the Board of Directors (Armenia), who has close ties to the UAE; Lolick Henderson, Member of the Board of Directors (United States); David Kohler, Member of the Board of Directors (Switzerland); Jameson Govoni, CEO of UG Solutions, a security contractor with the Foundation (United States); and Philip (Phil) Riley, CEO of Safe Reach Solutions (United States).
AOHR UK explained that the so-called aid centres were designed to be death traps. Since the beginning of their operations, at least 1,000 civilians have been killed and more than 6,781 others wounded by live ammunition fired at crowds of exhausted and starved aid seekers, who line up for very long kilometres, in what looked like a long narrow canal, where movement is restricted and people can only go in one direction, with no option to retreat or seek shelter.
AOHR UK emphasised that the individuals named in the requests are also responsible for the spread of famine in the Gaza Strip by enabling the occupation to weaponise food distribution. This has been achieved by restricting aid distribution to specific centres and eliminating the role of specialised UN agencies, resulting in the deaths of at least 113 civilians, including 80 children, with thousands more who are at risk of starvation to death. These individuals exercised full strategic and executive authority, overseeing the planning, coordination, and field implementation of this repressive model, despite being fully aware of its deadly consequences and despite repeated international warnings.
AOHR UK further noted in its request that these violations were neither incidental nor isolated, but rather the direct result of a deliberate implementation of a military-style model of aid distribution. Testimonies from some former security personnel working under the foundation described the situation on the ground as terrifying chaos, governed by the brute force and collective punishment, devoid of any humanitarian or professional standards.
The request indicated that the establishment of this Foundation was not driven by a humanitarian need, but rather part of a broader strategy to undermine the United Nations and its relief agencies and replacing them with a system under the Israeli occupation military control, backed by the United States and regional parties both economically and militarily. This Foundation has thus become a tool for implementing a policy of deliberate killing and starvation, tying the provision of aid to military and political conditions, in flagrant violation of the principles of neutrality, independence, and dignity that form the foundation of humanitarian work.
The request included a comprehensive legal file supported by evidence, including UN and press reports, testimonies from former soldiers and employees of the foundation, and satellite images showing that the distribution centres were built within “buffer zones” controlled by the Israeli occupation army, reflecting their military, not humanitarian, nature. It also included data documenting the involvement of security company personnel in the use of lethal force and the systematic humiliation of civilians.
AOHR UK warned that the European Union’s continued failure to act on these crimes results in more casualties every day. This inaction is one of the main reasons for the occupation government’s aggression and its disregard for international calls to end the aggression, open border crossings, and allow the entry of food and medicine.
AOHR UK further stressed that the European Union supports the occupation and is complicit in its crimes through the various security, military, and economic partnerships and contracts it has with the occupation. Recently, the EU renewed a bilateral partnership contract, despite widespread calls to cancel it and impose an arms embargo. However, these just demands were ignored by the European Union Council of Ministers, which maintained its shameful position of supporting the occupation. To throw dust in the eyes, some European officials issued tweak and hollow statements and declarations that fall far short the scale of atrocities being committed.
AOHR UK called on members of the European Parliament to pressure the EU Council of Ministers to take concrete and decisive measures to end the EU’s complicity in the crimes committed and match the gravity of the ongoing atrocities. It is no longer acceptable to continue issuing empty statements and declarations while all forms of support flow to the occupation government.
AOHR UK noted that in recent weeks it has submitted various requests to several international bodies to hold the institution’s officials accountable. It also submitted a request to the UK Foreign Office demanding sanctions against the institution’s officials, based on the same legal system, the Global Human Rights Sanctions Act of 2020. This affirms that these officials must not go unpunished and that they must be held accountable for their role in producing a criminal system aimed at destroying civilian populations.
