Israel’s parliament has approved a controversial bill to ban the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), considered Gaza’s lifeline, from operating in Israeli territory and Israeli-controlled areas.
At a time when the humanitarian crisis in Gaza is worsening and Israel is under increasing pressure to allow aid supplies, the law, which does not take immediate effect, risks overturning an already fragile aid delivery process.
The ban would lead to the closure of UNRWA’s premises in the Occupied Palestinian Territory – including the West Bank, occupied East Jerusalem – and effectively cripple the agency’s ability to fulfill its mandate established by the UN General Assembly in Gaza in 1949.
UNRWA is the lead humanitarian aid agency in Gaza, which has been devastated by Israel’s war for more than a year. Hundreds of UNRWA workers have been killed in Israeli strikes, which the U.N.
The vote passed 92-10 and followed a heated debate between supporters of the law and its opponents, primarily members of Arab parliamentary parties.
A second bill to sever diplomatic ties with UNRWA was also voted on late Monday.
‘Dangerous Precedent’
The UNRWA chief said the ban set “a dangerous precedent” and would “deepen the suffering of Palestinians”.
“This is the latest in an ongoing campaign to discredit UNRWA… these bills will deepen the suffering of Palestinians,” the agency’s head, Philippe Lazzarini, told X.
Earlier, an UNRWA spokesperson condemned the move as “barbaric”.
“It is outrageous that a member state of the United Nations is acting to eliminate the UN agency that is the largest humanitarian response in Gaza,” Juliet Douma told the AFP news agency.
Adnan Abu Hasna, UNRWA’s media adviser, said Israel’s decision to ban the organization would represent a collapse of the entire humanitarian process.
Speaking to Al Jazeera, Hasna described the decision as an “unprecedented” increase.
For more than seven decades, the UN has been working throughout the Palestinian territories – including the West Bank and occupied East Jerusalem, as well as Palestinian refugees in Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. The company has provided essential help and assistance.
It has been the subject of intense Israeli criticism for years, which escalated after the start of Israel’s increasingly deadly offensive in the besieged Gaza Strip.
The Palestinian president condemned the ban, saying such a move could not be tolerated.
“We reject and condemn the law… We will not allow this… the overwhelming vote of the so-called Knesset [Israel’s parliament] It shows that Israel is becoming a fascist state,” Nabil Abu Rudayneh, the president’s spokesman in Ramallah, said in a statement.
‘grave concern’
Al Jazeera’s Noor Odeh, reporting from Amman, Jordan, said it would “deprive some 3 million Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and Gaza of any services provided by UNRWA”.
“UNRWA provides education, health services and vocational training to Palestinian refugees. It’s a massive operation in the Palestinian territories, and 13,000 people are employed in Gaza alone,” Ode said.
October 7, 2023 Israel accuses some of UNRWA’s thousands of staff of participating in Hamas attacks. It said hundreds of its staff had been in contact with the group and that the Israeli military had found Hamas assets near or under UNRWA facilities.
The agency denies knowingly aiding armed groups and says it acts quickly to remove any suspected militants from its ranks.
The bills, which do not include provisions for alternative bodies to oversee its work, have been heavily criticized by international aid groups and a few of Israel’s Western allies.
The US said it was “deeply concerned” about the bill. “We have made it clear to the government of Israel that we are deeply concerned about this,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters, reiterating the agency’s “vital” role in distributing humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip.
The EU’s foreign policy chief, Joseph Borrell, said the ban would “make UNRWA’s core activities in Gaza practically impossible and seriously impede the delivery of its services in the West Bank”.
In a post on X, he said the law “totally contradicts international law and the fundamental principle of humanity”.
Aid embargoes to Israel
Before the legislation was passed, the foreign ministers of Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, South Korea and the United Kingdom issued statements expressing “grave concern”.
“It is critical that UNRWA and other UN organizations and agencies deliver humanitarian assistance and their assistance fully to those most in need, effectively fulfilling their mandates,” the statement said.
UNRWA and other humanitarian organizations have accused Israel of severely restricting the flow of aid into Gaza, where nearly all of the 2.4 million people have been displaced at least once since October last year. Health officials say more than 43,000 Palestinians have been killed.
Israeli forces continue to close key border crossings, including the Rafah crossing, preventing humanitarian aid, including food, medicine and much-needed fuel, from entering the bombed-out area. In Gaza’s north, a total siege of more than 20 days has left hospitals on the brink of collapse and 400,000 people without access to basic necessities.
UNRWA has suffered heavy losses since last year, with at least 233 of its team members killed and two-thirds of the agency’s facilities in Gaza damaged or destroyed since the war began.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose administration has restricted aid into Gaza, has promised to provide humanitarian aid to Palestinians after the blockade.
“Sustainable humanitarian aid in Gaza must be available now and in the future… We are ready to work with our international partners to ensure that Israel continues to provide humanitarian aid to civilians in Gaza without threatening Israel’s security,” Netanyahu said. A post on X.
