What was once a vital humanitarian lifeline has become a place of fear and disappearance. The Karm Abu Salem Crossing, Gaza’s only partially functioning humanitarian passage, has, according to multiple accounts, turned into a “trap” where Palestinian staff working for international organisations risk arrest or vanishing altogether.

Among the latest detainees is Raed Al-Afifi, a senior UNICEF employee and UN passport holder. He was reportedly granted a coordination permit by Israeli authorities before being detained at the crossing last week. Since then, there has been no information on his whereabouts or condition. Colleagues and family members have received no response from Israeli officials, and the UN itself has remained silent, a silence that many describe as unbearable.

Humanitarian workers say Al-Afifi’s case is part of a pattern of systematic targeting of Palestinian employees of international agencies. Those attempting to cross into or out of Gaza report being harassed, detained, or interrogated under vague “security” claims. Many fear that Israel’s objective is to intimidate and sideline Palestinian professionals in key humanitarian roles, replacing them with foreign staff deemed less critical of its conduct in Gaza.

The climate of fear extends beyond individuals. Aid convoys continue to face restrictions and prolonged delays, while communication channels are tightly monitored. Several international NGOs have warned that the disappearance of UN staff at Karm Abu Salem undermines the entire humanitarian operation in Gaza. Forty aid groups recently accused Israel of obstructing relief delivery by imposing a new registration system for NGOs, a policy that has left millions of dollars’ worth of aid stranded outside the Strip.

For the families of those detained, and for Palestinian humanitarian staff who risk their lives daily to serve their communities, Karm Abu Salem Crossing now stands as a grim symbol of the dangers of doing their jobs under occupation, a gate that once offered passage, now synonymous with fear.