The United Nations announced on Thursday that the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) continues to perform its missions despite the Israeli ban on its activities coming into effect.
UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric said in a press conference: “We are in contact with our colleagues (at UNRWA) in the region, and they continue to perform their duties and provide services.”
He explained that UNRWA clinics in East Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank are open, and that humanitarian aid operations are continuing in the Gaza Strip.
Dujarric also stressed that UNRWA is determined to remain in the region and perform its missions, noting that the UN flag is still flying over the agency’s buildings.
On Thursday, the Tel Aviv government’s decision to end UNRWA’s activities in Israel and occupied East Jerusalem came into effect.
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On October 28, 2024, the Knesset finally approved by a large majority two laws that prevent UNRWA from carrying out any activities inside the Palestinian territories, withdraw privileges and facilities from it, and prevent any official contact with it.
Tel Aviv claims that UNRWA employees participated in the Hamas attack on Israeli settlements and military bases on October 7, but the United Nations has confirmed UNRWA’s commitment to neutrality, insists on continuing its work, and rejects the Israeli ban.
The Palestinians’ need for UNRWA, the largest international humanitarian organization, has grown under the weight of a genocidal war waged by Israel with American support on the Gaza Strip for more than 15 months, leaving more than 159,000 Palestinians dead and wounded.
