Israel’s Knesset passes laws banning UNRWA from operating in occupied Palestine

Occupied Palestine (Quds News Network)- The Israeli Knesset on Monday passed two laws banning the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) from operating in occupied Palestine within 90 days.

The laws would effectively ban UNRWA from being able to operate inside Israel, Gaza, the occupied West Bank, and occupied East Jerusalem.

Ninety-two members of the Knesset voted in favor of the law, while ten voted against it.

The first law says that UNRWA is not allowed to “operate any institution, provide any service, or conduct any activity, whether directly or indirectly”, in Israel.

The second law states that no Israeli government official or agency may contact UNRWA, effectively prohibiting Israeli officials from providing services or dealing with UNRWA employees.

The legislation – which will not come into effect immediately – is expected to lead to the closure of Unrwa’s East Jerusalem headquarters and would effectively block the delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza via Rafah. The severing of diplomatic relations would preclude Israel from issuing entry and work permits to foreign Unrwa staff and prevent coordination with the Israeli military to permit aid shipments.

UNRWA was founded by the United Nations a year after the 1948 creation of Israel that led to the forced displacement of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from their homes in an event known by Palestinians as the “Nakba” (catastrophe).

The agency, which began by assisting about 750,000 Palestinian refugees in 1950, now serves some 5.9 million across the Middle East, many of whom live in refugee camps in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and East Jerusalem as well as in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria.

It is the primary source of humanitarian support for Palestinians.

“It’s outrageous that a member state of the United Nations is working to dismantle a UN agency which also happens to be the largest responder in the humanitarian operation in Gaza,” Juliette Touma, spokesperson for Unrwa, said in a statement.

In a statement, Philippe Lazzarini, the Commissioner-General of Unrwa, called the vote “unprecedented” and said it “sets a dangerous precedent”.

“These bills will only deepen the suffering of Palestinians, especially in Gaza where people have been going through more than a year of sheer hell,” he said.

On Sunday, the foreign ministers of Canada, Australia, France, Germany, Japan, South Korea and the UK all voiced their opposition to the legislation and said it could lead to “devastating consequences.”

“Without [UNRWA’s] work, the provision of such assistance and services, including education, healthcare, and fuel distribution in Gaza and the West Bank would be severely hampered if not impossible,” the statement said.

Just prior to the Knesset’s vote on the laws, the European Union’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, warned the decision was in contradiction of international law.

“All UN agencies embody the rules-based international order as they uphold and implement the UN Charter, to which all UN Member States must abide,” Borrell said.

The legislation followed false allegations by Israel that members of the Unrwa staff in Gaza were involved in the 7 October operation.

A UN inquiry published in April found no evidence of wrongdoing by Unrwa staff, noting that Israel had neither responded to requests for names and information nor “informed Unrwa of any concrete concerns relating to Unrwa staff since 2011”.

Several countries suspended financing for the agency after Israel made the accusations. Most of those countries – Germany, Australia, Canada, Sweden, and Japan – resumed funding. The US, however, has held out on restoring funding to the agency.

Following the passing of the first law, Boaz Bismuth, a member of Likud, the architect of the bill, said: “Anyone that behaves like a terrorist has no rights in Israel…. UNRWA equals Hamas, period.”