Israel has banned the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees from operating on its territory.
The only alternative for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNWRA) is to allow Israel to provide services in the Gaza Strip. This was announced on Monday by the head of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini. TASR informs about it according to a Reuters report.
Israel banned UNWRA from operating on its territory last month. Lazzarini met with donors in Geneva and described Israel’s decision as the darkest moment in the agency’s 75-year history.
“I am constantly asked whether or not there is a plan B. There is no plan B,” Lazzarini declared. “If the UN or the international community does not respond, the responsibility will once again be borne by the occupying power, which is Israel,” he added.
UNRWA provides humanitarian aid and shelters to the many Palestinians in the Gaza Strip who have lost their homes in the war between Hamas and Israel.
Israel accused UNRWA of being involved in a terrorist attack by Hamas on October 7, 2023. Israel responded with a military offensive against Hamas militants in the Palestinian enclave.
Most of the donors have renewed their contributions
A UN investigation confirmed that nine UNRWA staff were likely involved in the attack and dismissed them. Following Israeli allegations in January that UNRWA staff were involved in the attack, some donors temporarily suspended funding, including the US, which is the largest donor. Most of them have already renewed their posts.
In October, the Israeli parliament approved a law banning UNRWA from operating in Israel and ending the cooperation of Israeli authorities with UNRWA. It should take effect at the end of January. The head of UNRWA said he had called on states to try to stop the law at a meeting in Geneva. “We will operate until the day we can no longer operate, and until then we will exhaust all possible diplomatic avenues,” Lazzarini said.
