United Nations, October 31 (IPS) – On October 28, the Israeli parliament voted to close the operation of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in Israel. Two bills were passed by the Knesset, Israel’s house of representatives, one banning all UNRWA efforts, and the other banning communications between Israeli authorities and UNRWA staff. The impact of this amendment is expected to exacerbate the dire conditions for millions of Palestinians who are already in the midst of a humanitarian crisis.
This comes after nearly eighty years of work by UNRWA in Palestine to provide refugees with vital humanitarian aid. The absence of UNRWA’s mission in Palestine is expected to further prevent aid from reaching the nation, leaving millions stranded amid ongoing conflict and the coming cold winter. UNRWA has actively supported the Palestinian people since 1948, distributing essential resources including food, water and shelter, and providing essential social services such as health care and education.
UNRWA and the United Nations (UN) have responded to these laws and condemned Israel’s actions against the Palestinian people. “The application of the laws could have very painful consequences for Palestinian refugees in the occupied Palestinian territory, which is unacceptable,” said UN Secretary-General António Guterres.
UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini issued a statement on X (formerly known as Twitter) saying, “These regulations will deepen the suffering of the Palestinian people, especially in Gaza where people have been going through hell for more than a year. They deprive more than 650,000 girls and boys there of education, which puts an entire generation of children at risk.
Israeli authorities have also disputed their stance on the bills, accusing UNRWA of promoting terrorism and anti-Semitism. Yulia Malinovsky, a member of the Knesset, told reporters that UNRWA does not deserve legal protection from Israeli retaliation, saying that aid workers should no longer receive “five-star treatment” in Israel. Malinovsky also pointed out that UNRWA is cooperating with Hamas.
“UNRWA has chosen to make itself an inseparable part of the Hamas path – and now is the time to completely disassociate itself from it,” said former Israeli military cabinet member Benny Gantz.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin issued a joint statement to the Israeli authorities, warning that the recently passed bills “will hamper the response of the people in Gaza at this critical time and deny essential educational and social services to tens of thousands of people. Palestinians in the West Bank and Jerusalem”.
This particularly affects humanitarian organizations as almost all people in Gaza depend on aid to survive. Right now, humanitarian aid is more important than ever as Gaza faces a high risk of polio outbreaks, the destruction of critical infrastructure, and dwindling resources.
“Israel has bombed the Palestinian people to death, maimed them, starved them, and is now withdrawing the most aid of all. Part by part, Israel is dismantling Gaza as an independent and habitable state for the Palestinian people. Today’s ban on UNRWA is condemned and another step in this crime, ” said Sally Abi Khalil, Oxfam’s Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa.
UNRWA and its partners, including the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), began a second round of polio vaccinations in Gaza on October 14. Although initially successful, continued bombardment stopped the campaign from reaching northern Gaza, home to about 100,000 unvaccinated children. 120,000. The deadline for giving these children the second important dose falls in mid-November, after which the chances of complete vaccination decrease significantly.
“This is not only a danger to the 120,000 children left in northern Gaza, children ten years old and under, but also to children in the greater region. That is why we are incredibly concerned and persistent in this second round. It happened in early November,” said Rosalia Bollen, Communication Specialist of UNICEF in Gaza .
Bollen adds that the outbreak of polio, the ongoing war, and the lack of humanitarian aid have had a major impact on children’s education, describing the children of Gaza as a “lost generation”. UNRWA runs a variety of social services in Palestine, including more than 183 schools in Gaza. These schools will be closed due to two recently passed bills.
As the bills were passed by the Knesset, Israel continued its air campaign in Gaza. On the morning of October 29, Israel launched an airstrike on the Beit Lahiya shelter, which killed at least 109 people and leveled a five-story building. The Gaza Health Ministry reported that a series of bombings in populated areas of northern Gaza resulted in the death of more than 800 people during the three-week air campaign.
“The bombardment of northern Gaza does not stop. The bombs continue to fall, the Israeli army separates families and arrests many people and fleeing people are reported to be shot. The policies and procedures of the Israeli Government in northern Gaza are in danger of dislocating all Palestinians in the face of what could be brutal crimes, including and moving to crimes against humanity,” said UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk.
In addition, heavy bombardment has halted humanitarian aid, effectively cutting off the flow of supplies for millions of Palestinians. With resources almost completely depleted, humanitarian organizations fear the onset of famine in Gaza. A statement by the World Food Program (WFP) says, “Food systems in Gaza have been severely damaged due to the destruction of factories, plantations and shops. Markets are almost empty as many trade routes are no longer functional.”
In early October of this year, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report warned that nearly 96 percent of Gaza will face severe food shortages, with nearly half a million people facing “catastrophic levels” of hunger. Famine is described as imminent.
Despite UNRWA’s work in the occupied Palestinian territories, conditions are expected to worsen as the harsh winter approaches. “After being forced to flee many times, hundreds of thousands of families in Gaza live in inadequate tents and shelters. When winter comes, these shelters will not protect them from strong winds, heavy rains and cold,” it said. Alison Ely, coordinator of the Shelter Cluster in Gaza.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Secretary-General’s Spokesman Stéphane Dujarric confirmed that the UN will continue to do everything possible to help the Palestinian people. Dujarric also noted that due to the removal of UNRWA from Palestine, Israel is responsible for meeting the needs of millions of people living in their sovereignty. “Israel will have to fill the gap and meet those demands, or break international law,” Dujarric explained.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a statement announcing Israel’s intentions to provide aid to the affected communities in Gaza. “In the 90 days before this law goes into effect – and after that – we stand ready to work with our international partners to ensure that Israel continues to provide aid to the people of Gaza in a way that will not threaten Israel’s security,” Netanyahu said. .
Humanitarian organizations and US officials have expressed their concern that Israel will not be able to effectively carry out the work of UNRWA. Matthew Miller, a spokesman for the US State Department, said. “No one can replace them (UNRWA) right now in the midst of a crisis”.
Guterres echoed these sentiments in a post shared on X. “There is no other way for UNRWA.”
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© Inter Press Service (2024) — All Rights ReservedOriginal source: Inter Press Service
