Israel’s UN ambassador stated Friday that the UN agency for Palestinian refugees must cease operations and vacate all of its facilities in Jerusalem by January 30, confirming deadlines outlined in contentious Israeli legislation.
In defiance of international concern, Israeli lawmakers have enacted laws prohibiting UNRWA from conducting operations in Israel and east Jerusalem, the area of the city that Israel occupied after the 1967 Six-Day War.
Since the war began, Israel has increasingly criticised the agency, claiming that 12 of its 13,000 Gaza employees participated in the deadly October 7, 2023, Hamas attack.
Ambassador Danny Danon wrote to UNRWA chief Antonio Guterres, saying, “UNRWA is required to cease its operations in Jerusalem and evacuate all premises in which it operates in the city, no later than 30 January 2025.”
UNRWA is the backbone of humanitarian operations for Palestinians, helping the approximately six million Palestinian refugees in Gaza, the occupied West Bank, Lebanon, Jordan, and Syria.
Although the agency has long had its administrative headquarters in east Jerusalem, it also operates schools and health clinics in the area.
Although Israel’s parliament has not officially prohibited UNRWA from operating in Gaza or the West Bank, the country has established a law that forbids communication between Israeli officials and the organisation.
Preventing UNRWA from functioning “may sabotage the Gaza ceasefire, failing once again hopes of people who have gone through unspeakable suffering,” UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini cautioned.
Late Friday, he posted on social networking platform X, saying, “UNRWA’s work must continue in Gaza + across the occupied Palestinian territory.”
