Israeli laws blocking UNRWA – devastating humanitarian impact for Palestinians?

What do the laws say?

The bills, approved overwhelmingly by Israeli parliamentarians (92 in favour, 10 against) on Monday, would prohibit the country’s authorities from having any contact with UNRWA, and bar the agency from operating within Israel itself.

The passage of aid into Gaza and the West Bank requires close coordination between UNRWA and the Israeli authorities. If the legislation is implemented Israel will no longer issue the agency’s staff with work or entry permits, and coordination with the Israeli military, essential for the safe passage of aid, will no longer be possible.

Why have these bills been passed?

Israeli politicians have long criticized UNRWA, with some claiming that members of the agency collude with Hamas. Those claims, which are denied by the agency, have grown louder since the October 7 Hamas-led attacks on Israel, in which over 1130 people were killed.

In recent months, several senior Israeli government officials have denounced UNRWA, with a former Ambassador describing  the agency as “a Palestinian organization fully committed to the Jewish State’s destruction”. The day before the vote, one of the politicians behind the bills was reported as saying that UNRWA “is educating kids to hate Israel and spreading antisemitism.”

However, an independent UN review in April confirmed UNRWA’s long standing commitment to uphold the humanitarian principle of neutrality and concluded that the Agency has a more developed approach to neutrality than similar UN entities or NGOs.

At a briefing to the Security Council that month, the Commissioner-General of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini, explained that the agency is the “backbone” of the entire aid operation in Gaza, in the face of an “insidious campaign” by Israeli authorities to push it out of the occupied Palestinian territories.

What is UNRWA’s role in the occupied Palestinian territories?

UNRWA was established shortly after the creation of the United Nations itself by General Assembly Resolution 302 (IV), in the wake of the 1948 Arab-Israeli war, to provide “direct relief and works programmes” for registered Palestinian refugees, defined as “persons whose normal place of residence was Palestine during the period 1 June 1946 to 15 May 1948, and who lost both home and means of livelihood as a result of the 1948 War.”

For decades, the agency has provided essential humanitarian services to Palestine refugees in areas controlled by Israel, notably in the occupied Palestinian territories (the West Bank and the Gaza Strip). These include health centres, schools and vocational training centres.

How has the UN reacted to the adoption of the legislation?

The reaction from the UN system to the bills has been swift and unequivocal. As the news broke on Monday, several of the most senior UN officials, up to and including the Secretary-General, António Guterres, condemned the decision.

Mr. Guterres stressed the central role that UNRWA plays in the delivery of aid and said that the effective ban would have “devastating consequences”. The acting head of the UN aid coordination office, Joyce Msuya, called the decision “dangerous and outrageous,” whilst Mr. Lazzarini said that the bills will “increase the suffering of the Palestinians and are nothing less than collective punishment.”

The condemnation continued on Tuesday, with UN human rights office (OHCHR) spokesperson Jeremy Laurence, declaring that aid deliveries will “grind to a halt” without UNRWA, and World Health chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, calling the development “intolerable”. UNICEF chief Catherine Russell also reminded that UNRWA is crucial in delivering lifesaving aid to Palestinian children and families. “This decision is dangerous. The lives and futures of Palestinian children are at stake,” while James Elder, a UNICEF staffer in the region denounced the decision saying “a new way has been found to kill children.”

What happens next?

Following the announcement, humanitarian affairs coordination office (OCHA) spokesperson Jens Laerke insisted that the UN is trying to “not have an implementation” of the Knesset decision, citing the outpouring of protest not only from the UN, but also from “prominent government officials… and heads of State”.

Mr. Guterres informed the President of the General Assembly that he had written a letter to the Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, calling on his government to continue to allow UNRWA to operate, and to respect Israel’s obligations under international law.

And, on Wednesday, the members of the Security Council collectively released a statement strongly warning against any attempts to dismantle or diminish UNRWA’s operations and mandate, expressed their grave concern over the adoption of the legislation and noted their appreciation for the work of the agency’s staff members.

If the passage of the bills continues unimpeded, they will come into effect within 90 days of the adoption. 

What UNRWA built: photo essay

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) was established by the General Assembly on 8 December 1949 to carry out direct relief and works programmes for Palestine refugees, following the 1948 war. The agency began operations on 1 May 1950.

The agency’s services encompass education, health care, relief and social services, camp infrastructure and improvement, microfinance and emergency assistance, including in times of armed conflict.

When the UN agency began operations in 1950, it was responding to the needs of about 750,000 Palestine refugees. Today, some 5.9 million Palestine refugees in the occupied Palestinian territory, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria are eligible for UNRWA services.

This UN Photo essay documents the critical work the agency has been doing in the region for the last 74 years.