The Dark Story of Doctors Without Borders

Terrorism, anti-Semitism, prostitution: MSF is not as humanitarian as it pretends to be

It is written in black and white in the charter of Doctors Without Borders (MSF-Médecins sans frontières): “Médecins Sans Frontières observes neutrality and impartiality in the name of universal medical ethics and the right to humanitarian assistance and claims full and unhindered freedom in the exercise of its functions.”

Neutrality and impartiality… The next few lines show just the opposite, with examples of cases where employees went so far as taking up arms against the “enemy”, Israel. Initially founded to treat the poorest, MSF, over time, has turned into a political organization. And this transformation created a multi-headed monster.

A Hamas Proxy

We all remember the horrible images of October 7, when women, children, and even babies were tortured and beheaded by a group whose name conjures up feelings of hate and revenge: Hamas, which is considered a terrorist entity in most Western countries. But not among MSF members.

Since that dark day in October 2023, the NGO has not published any message denouncing the crimes committed by Hamas. No reference, either, to the hostages illegally detained in Gaza and the medical care they require.

With around 300 staff on site in the Gaza Strip, MSF generally works in collaboration with the local health ministry, run by none other than Hamas itself. One might believe that this cooperation is a forced one, but judging by the tweets published by MSF on Twitter/X, it is anything but that.

Here is what, for instance, one of the NGO’s nurses wrote on the social network: “Always remember that Gaza has done what all Arab armies have not done (…) !! It dug tunnels with its own hands. It built its weapons with its own hands (…) !! (It) sacrificed (its) sons, (its) women, (its) youth, (its) elderly, (its) homes and (its) mosques for the dignity of this land (…) !!”

On the official MSF Twitter/X account, a constant rain of harsh criticism falls on Israel, with no mention of Hamas atrocities. A director of the organization, Avril Benoît, defended the terrorist group in full television coverage by denying that it was using health establishments to hide weapons and take cover. But the Israeli army has proven, with supporting images, that this was the case. But why believe the enemy?

A Historical Complicity in Crimes

MSF’s anti-Semitism is a historical fact, something an Israeli team observed in July 2010 when it was dispatched to Congo to treat victims of an accident involving a tanker truck. One of the Israeli doctors railed about the toxic relations his team had with MSF volunteers who showed reluctance to collaborate with Jews.

MSF, however, has long since crossed the line of anti-Semitism. In September 2015, the Spanish branch of the NGO published a short video glorifying Ahed Tamimi, who has engaged in numerous provocations against Israel. In the video, Tamimi is seen under posters depicting what she describes as “martyrs”. One of these martyrs, Muataz Washaha, was a member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a terrorist organization.

In December of that year, the French branch of MSF launched an exhibition titled In Between Wars, meant to display “the haunting and recurrent side of the violence of daily life under occupation.” The exhibition paid tribute to Palestinian “martyrs” and described images of young Palestinians throwing stones and Molotov cocktails at heavily armed Israeli soldiers as “iconic” scenes “of the Palestinian resistance against occupation.”

On November 21, 2023, MSF stated that three doctors had been killed during an Israeli strike on Al-Awda Hospital in Gaza. Two of these doctors, Mahmoud Abu Nujaila and Ahmad al-Sahar, were MSF employees. Abu Nujaila was also the head of a Hamas-linked NGO. As for al-Sahar, he frequently used social media to express his support for terrorism and killings perpetrated by Hamas.

As said above, it has happened that MSF employees have even taken up arms, as in 2007, when one of these employees, originally from Gaza, was arrested for plotting to assassinate Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. Instead of blaming the man, the NGO said it felt sorry for him.

That time, the terrorist was unable to fire a shot, but the red line was crossed on other occasions. In August 2018, an MSF nurse, Hani Majdalawi, opened fire on Israeli troops stationed along the border with the Gaza Strip. Majdalawi had previously collaborated with Oxfam in the United Kingdom.

The Prostitution Scandal

MSF employees have regularly flouted conventions by hiring prostitutes in Africa, according to whistleblowers who used to work for the NGO. These whistleblowers said that the phenomenon was widespread within MSF. In several cases, senior staff members allegedly bartered treatments and medication for sex.

A British TV team investigating the matter met eight former female MSF employees who once worked in various offices across Europe and Africa. Several of them described the culture within the organization as “toxic”.

A former member of the MSF’s London division said she saw a senior member of staff bringing “very young girls” to the NGO’s offices in Kenya. “Very young” girls is an understatement, as they were, in fact, underage girls.

In February 2018, MSF admitted to firing 19 employees for sexual harassment or assault.

Despite these serious dysfunctions, the NGO still receives funds from Canada, Switzerland and the UN.

Sources

BBC, Camera, Gatestone Institute, NGO Monitor #1, #2, #3, #4