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Borrell warns of ‘disastrous consequences’ for refugees if Israeli Knesset bans UNRWA

13 October, 2024 | Filed under: All News,more news,RECENT POSTS | Posted by:

Since 1949, UNRWA has been the main organisation responsible for delivering humanitarian aid to Palestinians in occupied territories and providing services for Palestinian refugees in other countries.

A schoolgirl during a demonstration against an UNRWA funding gap that could about keep 500,000 Palestinian students out of school, 16 August, 2015

Copyright Khalil Hamra/AP

The European Union has warned of “disastrous consequences” if Israel’s parliament passes a bill which would outlaw the UN agency for Palestinian refugees from operating in Israel.

EU Foreign Policy chief Josep Borrell expressed deep concern over the potential impact on Gaza’s residents if the Knesset approves the draft legislation.

Borrell urged Israeli authorities to allow the UN agency UNRWA to continue its vital work, in line with its UN General Assembly mandate. He highlighted that UNRWA provides essential services to millions in Gaza, the West Bank—including East Jerusalem—and across the region, including Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan, playing a crucial role in regional stability.

“The EU is a firm supporter of the United Nations and the multilateral and rules-based global governance system of which UNRWA, as a UN agency, is a part,” he said.

His comments come after an Israeli parliamentary committee approved a bill earlier this week that would ban UNRWA from operating in Israeli territory.

It would also sever official contact between the Israeli government and the UN agency.

Since 1949, UNRWA has been the main organisation responsible for delivering humanitarian aid to Palestinians in occupied territories and providing services for Palestinian refugees in other countries.

But for years, Israel has lobbied against its work, alleging the body has links to terrorist groups.

A United Nations worker prepares aid for distribution to Palestinians at an UNRWA warehouse in Deir Al-Balah, 23 October, 2023
A United Nations worker prepares aid for distribution to Palestinians at an UNRWA warehouse in Deir Al-Balah, 23 October, 2023Hassan Eslaiah/Copyright 2023 The AP. All rights reserved.

Earlier this year, Israel alleged that some of the agency’s staff participated in the Hamas’ attack on southern Israel on 7 October last year, an incursion that sparked the war in Gaza.

The US State Department said in January that the Israeli allegations related to 12 UNRWA employees.

Funding suspended

Those claims led to more than a dozen international donors suspending financial support to the humanitarian agency.

In Europe, Austria, Lithuania, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and the UK all froze payments to UNRWA.

Ireland and Norway said at the start of the year that their payments to the agency – which plays a pivotal role in ensuring life-saving aid reaches the population of Gaza – would continue.

The UN launched an investigation into the Israeli allegations and dismissed nine staff. Most donors subsequently reinstated funding.

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Source:euronews.com