Thursday 26 / December / 2024
New York: The United Nations (UN) has received notification from Israel regarding the cancelation of the agreement signed in 1967 with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), that regulates its relief operations in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
According to the Palestinian news agency (WAFA), the Israeli entity officially notified the UN that it was canceling the agreement through its representative to the organization.
UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini previously said that dismantling UNRWA in the absence of a viable alternative will deprive Palestinian children of learning in the foreseeable future, emphasizing that instead of focusing on banning UNRWA or finding alternatives, the focus should be on reaching an agreement to end this conflict.
On 28 October 2024, the Israeli Knesset approved in its second and third readings of a law banning UNRWA from operating within the Israeli entity.
The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) has warned that Israeli legislation to shut down the main lifeline for Palestine refugees in Gaza "will be deadly' if fully implemented.
"UNRWA is indispensable in delivering the urgent, life-saving assistance that 2.2 million people in Gaza urgently need," UNICEF said in a statement.
"With the children of Gaza already facing one of the gravest humanitarian crises in recent history, if fully implemented, this decision will be deadly," it added.
The statement underlined that UNRWA is the only UN General Assembly-mandated agency to provide relief operations for Palestinian refugees.
"UNRWA runs a range of social services, with over 18,000 employees in Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, providing health, education and other essential services for Palestinian refugees," it said. "No UN agency can take over this responsibility."
