Charity Commission Opens Regulatory Probe Into MSF After Allegations Of Links To Gaza Militants

The Charity Commission has opened a regulatory compliance case into Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), also known as Doctors Without Borders, after a report from UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI) raised allegations that some Gaza-based staff and institutional links may have been exploited for terrorist purposes.

The commission confirmed in an email dated 23 September 2026 that its high-risk compliance team had opened a case to assess the concerns submitted by UKLFI. The regulator said the review will examine governance, safeguarding and reporting arrangements rather than asserting wrongdoing.

What UKLFI Alleged

UKLFI submitted a dossier identifying several Gaza-based MSF employees whom Israeli authorities have named as having links to militant groups. The report highlights three main strands of concern:

Staff at an MSF hospital in Zawaida, Gaza, treating sick and injured Palestinians - Reuters/Mahmoud Issa

• Allegations about individual staff members, including claims that some were operatives or publicly glorified attacks;
• MSF’s operational relationships in Gaza, including cooperation with the Hamas-run Gaza ministry of health and the supply of medical goods to that ministry; and
• Whether MSF UK’s trustees exercised sufficient due diligence and oversight over overseas centres receiving UK funds, and whether safeguards prevent diversion of resources.

Individuals Named

One prominent case cited in the report concerns Fadi Jihad Mohammed al-Wadiya, an MSF physiotherapist killed in Gaza in June 2024. Israeli authorities said he was a Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) operative involved in rocket development; MSF initially disputed that claim. In February, material published by PIJ’s military wing named him a "martyr commander" and identified him as deputy head of a military manufacturing unit.

The dossier also references a driver identified by Israeli authorities as a Hamas sniper and a doctor alleged to have ties to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) medical network and to have posted material praising attacks. UKLFI asks the commission to scrutinise staff vetting and incident-reporting practices in light of these claims.

MSF Response

MSF: "We would never knowingly employ anyone involved in military activities, which contradicts our core values and ethics. Any employee who engages in military activity would pose a danger to our staff and patients. We are cooperating fully with the Charity Commission and are confident in the integrity of our processes."

MSF's 2024 trustees' report shows the organisation received more than £95m in income that year, including £2.7m designated for projects in the Palestinian territories. UKLFI says existing safeguarding measures are insufficient to reduce the risk that UK-raised funds could benefit people connected to proscribed groups.

MSF works in conflict zones and trouble spots across the world, including in Africa, where they launched training to cope with an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo this summer - AFP via Getty Images/Tony Karumba

What The Regulatory Case Means

The Charity Commission uses a regulatory compliance case to examine potential weaknesses in governance, management or safeguarding. It is a pre-statutory step intended to identify issues that may require action; opening such a case does not indicate a finding of unlawful conduct by MSF UK or its trustees.

The commission has not announced any conclusions. UKLFI welcomed the decision to open the case, while MSF says it is cooperating and maintains that it does not knowingly employ people engaged in military activity.

Reporting draws on the UKLFI submission and statements from the Charity Commission and MSF. The investigation is ongoing and further developments may follow as the commission assesses the dossier.