UNRWA, the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, must end operations and vacate all its “premises” in Jerusalem by January 30, Israel’s ambassador said Friday, affirming the stated deadlines in controversial legislation passed last year.
Despite widespread international opposition, Israeli lawmakers passed two bills that essentially ban the U.N. agency from operating in Israel and severely curtail its activities in Gaza and the West Bank.
Without coordination with Israel, it will be almost impossible for UNRWA to work in Gaza or the West Bank, as Jerusalem would no longer issue entry permits to these territories or allow coordination with the IDF. Israel also currently controls access to Gaza from Egypt, with Israeli forces deployed along the border between them.
The agency has faced criticism from Israel that has increased since the Gaza war was sparked by Hamas’s October 7, 2023 takeover of southern Israel, including claims that a dozen employees of UNRWA were involved in the fatal attack.
Israel alleges that more than 10% of UNRWA personnel in Gaza have ties to terrorist factions and that educational facilities under the organization’s auspices consistently incite hatred of Israel and glorify terror.
Israeli Ambassador Danny Danon wrote to UN chief Antonio Guterres on Friday: “UNRWA is required to cease its operations in Jerusalem and evacuate all premises in which it operates in the city no later than January 30, 2025 .”
Danny Danon, Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations, speaks during a Security Council meeting at United Nations headquarters, December 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
UNRWA – short for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East – provides education, health care and aid to millions of Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan , in Lebanon and Syria. The UN says it is the backbone of humanitarian operations for the Palestinians.
Israel had been extremely critical of UNRWA well before the invasion and slaughter of Hamas in southern Israel on October 7, 2023, claiming that its uniqueness in the world – granting refugee status not not only to the first generation of refugees but to their descendants – has perpetuated the conflict and culture of dependency among Palestinians.
It also accuses UNRWA schools of fomenting anti-Israeli and anti-Semitic beliefs.
While East Jerusalem has long been an administrative hub for the agency, it also runs the area’s schools and health clinics.
Israel also passed a law that prohibits contact between Israeli officials and UNRWA, but its Parliament has not banned UNRWA from operating in Gaza or the West Bank.
UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini said earlier this month that the agency planned to “stay and deliver” in areas where it could operate.
But having “no bureaucratic or operational relationship” Israel “makes your operational environment even more difficult,” he said.
In February, the IDF revealed the existence of an underground Hamas data center directly beneath UNRWA’s Gaza Strip headquarters. The IDF also repeatedly targeted Hamas command centers and gunmen hiding in UNRWA schools.
Emanuel Fabian contributed to this report.
