Bern (Quds News Network)- The Swiss-based Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a US-backed organization designated to distribute aid in the Gaza Strip, is shutting down operations before delivering any food, as a Geneva-based NGO calls for an investigation into the group. A GHF spokesperson confirmed the closure Sunday in a statement to the Israeli investigative outlet Shomrim, Israel’s Ynet News said Sunday. Humanitarian aid distribution in Gaza will now proceed solely through a US-registered entity also using the GHF name, the report added. The closure came the same day Jake Wood, the Executive Director of GHF, announced his resignation. The organisation could not adhere “to the humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence, which I will not abandon,” he said in a statement, and called for Israel to allow the entry of more aid. Wood’s resignation follows growing criticism of GHF’s operational structure and independence. The UN and other aid agencies have warned that the GHF plan is not neutral, violates humanitarian principles, and may expose civilians to harm. They have also said the model would increase forced displacement in Gaza. The UN has refused to participate in the plan. On Sunday, a Haaretz investigation revealed that several Israeli businessmen are among GHF’s owners. On Saturday, Israeli Ambassador to the US Yechiel Leiter confirmed that Israel helped create GHF. He made the statement in an interview with PragerU, a right-wing American media outlet. The NGO, which claims it has been based in Geneva since February, emerged from “private meetings of like-minded officials, military officers and business people with close ties to the Israeli government”, according to The New York Times. Following Wood’s resignation, the foundation said its operations would begin without him — as soon as Monday — and would be feeding more than 1 million Palestinians, or roughly half of Gaza’s population, by the end of the week. Until his resignation, Wood had maintained that he operated independently of Israel and its interests, and had pledged in an interview with The New York Times that he would not participate in a program that enabled the displacement of civilians. At the time of his appointment, he said in his resignation statement, the foundation was “a loose constellation of various ideas and concepts among a wide range of stakeholders and I sought to establish it as a truly independent humanitarian entity.” Months later, Wood feels that goal is “not possible,” he said on Sunday. “I urge Israel to significantly expand the provision of aid into Gaza through all mechanisms, and I urge all stakeholders to continue to explore innovative new methods for the delivery of aid, without delay, diversion, or discrimination,” he said. TRIAL International, a Geneva-based NGO, said Friday it had filed two legal submissions requesting a formal probe into GHF’s activities and legal status in Switzerland, reported Reuters. TRIAL International submitted one complaint on May 20 to the Swiss Federal Supervisory Authority for Foundations. Another was filed on May 21 with the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA). Both submissions demand an investigation into whether GHF complies with Swiss law and international humanitarian law. “We’re asking Switzerland to meet its legal obligations under the Geneva Conventions,” said Philip Grant, Executive Director of TRIAL International. “There are very grave issues at stake.” The NGO also requested clarification on whether GHF had declared the use of private security companies to deliver aid in Gaza — a requirement under Swiss law. It asked if Swiss authorities had approved this declaration. On March 2, Israel announced the closure of Gaza’s main crossings, cutting off food, medical and humanitarian supplies, leading to an unprecedented deterioration of humanitarian conditions, according to reports by human rights organisations who have accused it of using starvation as a weapon of war against Palestinains. The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report warned that almost a quarter of the civilian population would face catastrophic levels of food insecurity (IPC Phase Five) in the coming months. However, after about 80 days of total blockade and starvation and widespread international outrage, Israel announced about a week ago it will allow a very limited passage of aid trucks into the enclave through several international organizations until the new US-Israeli aid mechanism begins.