5 observations from the ground in Gaza by a former British Army officer

By Ryan Foley, Christian Post Reporter Friday, August 01, 2025

1. Gaza Humanitarian Foundation provides a 'far more effective way of getting aid' to people than Hamas 

Fox said that one way Hamas, the terror group that has controlled Gaza since 2007, has maintained its grip on the population is by "leveraging the aid."

But in May, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation launched efforts with the support of the Israeli military to deliver aid to Gazans. The group has provided millions of meals since then, but has garnered criticism from those who say its association with Israel violates principles of neutrality and allegations of civilians being killed near distribution sites. 

Fox cited the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation as part of Israel's efforts to take "control of the aid delivery mechanism" in addition to working to "make sure that the aid doesn't get hijacked on the way to delivery points" and "make sure that when people come to the delivery points to collect the aid, it's not then getting nicked by Hamas." 

Fox believes GHF is "a far more effective way of getting aid for free to people rather than Hamas selling it to them," stating, "People at the GHF sites have expressed surprise when they receive aid that they haven't had to pay for it."

"There has to be that secure delivery site before people can come to it and take the aid," Fox explained. "That is done intimately by contractors, former American service personnel, most usually."

Fox said the IDF provides "the wider bubble of security" around the four distribution sites. He addressed the concerns about shootings that have taken place near GHF distribution sites, which he alleged resulted from efforts by the IDF to engage in crowd control to prevent the formation of a "stampede for food" like one that recently killed 19 people. 

"Unfortunately, the IDF have limited options and they're using an option to control the crowds, which frankly isn't very good. They're trying to use warning shots to do it," Fox stated. "That's certainly not how the British Army would do it, I don't think. We do use warning shots. We absolutely do. And I've seen civilians hit by them as well. So, this does happen, but it is a suboptimal way, I would suggest, of putting crowd control measures in place."

Fox criticized Hamas' hostility toward GHF, saying that over a dozen GHF workers have been injured or killed, including "two from a grenade the other day."

"Hamas are embedding people in the crowd as civilians to try and draw fire from the IDF as well," Fox said. "And the IDF are a bit trigger-happy if we're brutally honest."

When asked why he believes IDF soldiers are "trigger-happy," he stressed it's because it's a "war zone" and their "rules of engagement need tightening up."

"I think they're a bit loose personally," he said. "Certainly perhaps not with fighter jets. So, I think their rules of engagement there are very, very tight. But on the ground with your guns, your infantry, I think frankly, they do go a bit over the top on occasion, which is unfortunate, and not again not how the British army would do it."