UNRWA was the target of an attempted fire. The UN agency for Palestinian refugees therefore announced the closure of its offices in East Jerusalem on Thursday evening. “Israeli extremists” “set fire” to open-air areas of the compound, his boss announced.
On Thursday evening, “Israelis set fire twice to the perimeter of the UNRWA headquarters in occupied East Jerusalem” while “UNRWA personnel and other UN agencies were present” inside, explains Philippe Lazzarini on X, specifying that no “member of the UN staff was injured”.
“I took the decision to close the compound until adequate security is re-established,” he adds, denouncing a “second heinous incident in less than a week” committed by “Israeli extremists” and in which “the lives of UN employees were put at serious risk”.
“Burn the United Nations!” »
These UNRWA offices house a service station for the UN agency’s vehicles, he emphasizes, recalling that “it is the responsibility of the State of Israel, as the occupying power, to ensure that United Nations personnel and facilities are protected at all times.”
In a video posted on his account, filmed from outside the UN compound, demonstrators can be heard proclaiming “Burn the United Nations!” “, while on the other side of the wire fence a UN employee extinguishes the burning vegetation with a garden hose.
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“In recent months, UN staff have been regularly subjected to harassment and intimidation. Our compound was severely vandalized and damaged. On several occasions, Israeli extremists threatened our staff with weapons,” he said Thursday evening.
