From conditionality to weaponisation: the transformation of aid in Palestine post-October 2023

Abstract

This article examines the shift from aid conditionality to aid weaponisation in Palestine in the aftermath of Hamas’s 7 October attack. It argues that donor actions following this event represent a transformation in their approach to Palestinian aid, moving from aid conditionality to aid weaponisation, where aid is utilised not just as a securitised tool for development and governance but as a mechanism of punishment and control. The article constructs the evolution of aid conditionality, showcasing various forms encompassing both explicit and implicit conditionalities. It then explores how aid weaponisation has manifested through aid suspensions and withdrawals, donors’ uncritical adoption of Israeli discourse, heightened surveillance of Palestinian organisations, and administrative measures that constrain autonomy. Thus, aid weaponisation serves as an active tool reinforcing conditions that perpetuate, rather than alleviate, settler colonial violence and, as in Gaza, ongoing genocide.