International protest after Israel’s vote banning UNRWA activities on its territory

2024-10-29 00:17:00

Un votes by an overwhelming majority. Israel’s parliament on Monday voted in favor of a bill banning the activities of the United Nations Palestinian Refugee Agency (UNRWA) on its territory, despite objections from the United States and the United Nations. The agency denounced a “scandalous” measure and several capitals, including Berlin, London and Madrid, condemned this vote.

The text was approved in the Knesset with 92 votes in favor and 10 against while Israel, which has long been very critical of the agency, accused some UNRWA employees of having participated in the Hamas attack in southern Israel on 7 October 2023 and to be fighters of the Palestinian Islamist movement.

READ ALSO What the UN and Hamas are hiding about UNRWA in GazaA second text, also widely adopted (89 to 7), prohibits Israeli officials from cooperating with UNRWA and its employees, which could significantly undermine the agency’s activities. Both laws will take effect 90 days after their adoption, according to the Knesset.

A “dangerous precedent”, according to UNRWA

For the head of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini, this ban “sets a dangerous precedent” and constitutes the latest episode “in an ongoing campaign to discredit” the agency. He said his ban would “exacerbate the suffering of Palestinians.”

READ ALSO This Hezbollah tunnel that the UN doesn’t want to seeIf this ban were implemented, “it would be a disaster, especially given the impact it is likely to have on humanitarian operations in Gaza and several parts of the West Bank,” UNRWA spokeswoman Juliette Touma told AFP. “UNRWA is the largest humanitarian organization in Gaza and is primarily responsible for the humanitarian response, including shelter, food and primary healthcare,” the spokesperson added.

Hamas, for its part, denounced a “Zionist aggression” against the Palestinians. Islamic Jihad, its ally in the conflict, condemned the “escalation of genocide” of the population.

Rains of international criticism

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This decision was criticized by many Western capitals. London is “gravely concerned” about the legislation “which risks making UNRWA’s essential work on behalf of the Palestinians impossible, putting the entire international humanitarian response in Gaza at risk”. Same story in Germany, which “strongly criticizes” this vote. Like Ireland, Norway, Slovenia and Spain, which in a joint statement “condemned” “a very serious precedent for the work of the United Nations”. Even before the vote, the United States had declared itself “very concerned”.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, said that Israel, which strictly controls the entry of international aid shipments, was “ready” to provide humanitarian aid to Gaza. “We stand ready to work with our international partners to ensure that Israel continues to facilitate humanitarian assistance to Gaza in a way that does not threaten Israel’s security,” he wrote on X.