L’Unrwa is officially banned in Israel. The IDF informed the UN on Monday, November 4, of the ban on the activities of its agency, considered the “backbone” of aid to refugees in the occupied Palestinian territories, on its territory. A week after the vote by the Israeli Parliament of a law prohibiting the activities of the UN relief agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), Israeli diplomacy “notified the UN of the cancellation of the agreement between Israel and UNRWA,” according to a press release. This agreement dates back to 1967, the year Israel began its occupation of the Palestinian territories of the West Bank and Gaza, as well as East Jerusalem.
Israel, which has long been very critical of UNRWA, has once again accused “employees of the organization of having participated in the massacre of October 7,” according to the Foreign Affairs press release. “The UN has received countless evidence of Hamas operatives being employed by UNRWA and the use of their facilities for terrorist purposes,” he added.
Fears for humanitarian aid
UNRWA provides essential assistance to refugees in the Palestinian territories and several Arab countries. “If this law is implemented, it risks causing the collapse of the international humanitarian operation in Gaza, of which UNRWA is the backbone,” warned Jonathan Fowler, a spokesperson for the agency.
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But the head of diplomacy Israel Katz rejects this argument. “The vast majority of humanitarian aid in Gaza is delivered by other organizations, and only 13% of this aid comes from UNRWA. “The State of Israel is committed to international law and will continue to facilitate the entry of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip in a manner that does not undermine the security of Israeli citizens,” the statement continued. .
ALSO READ What the UN and Hamas are hiding about UNRWA in GazaThe ban also raised concerns that UNRWA employees in the occupied West Bank could face problems moving from one location to another as well as accessing East Jerusalem or Israel without coordination with Israeli authorities.
