A human rights organisation has warned that Palestinians are being compelled to surrender facial biometrics and photographs in exchange for food parcels, under a system designed and enforced with the backing of American and Israeli companies. The programme, presented as “voluntary,” was described as coercive and degrading, reducing humanitarian aid to a tool of surveillance.

Skyline International reported that U.S. security contractors, including Safe Ritter Solutions, have used military equipment at distribution points to intimidate civilians into compliance. Facial recognition cameras installed at food lines allegedly feed images directly into joint U.S.–Israeli control rooms, raising grave concerns over privacy violations and the exploitation of vulnerable populations.

The organisation further accused major consulting and technology firms of helping to design digital checkpoints that exclude families unwilling to provide their biometric data, leaving thousands cut off from vital food assistance. It called for the dismantling of the system, accountability for the companies involved, and an immediate end to the militarisation of aid, warning that using hunger as a means of control represents a flagrant breach of international law.