Qatar, Saudi Arabia condemn Israel attempts to brand UNRWA 'terrorist group'

The UNRWA logo is seen on the vest of an employee during a visit to the Jabal El Hussein refugee camp of UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the near East) on 15 May 2024 [DIRK WAEM/BELGA MAG/AFP via Getty Images]

Saudi Arabia and Qatar condemned attempts by Israeli authorities to undermine efforts of the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) for Palestine Refugees by labelling it a terrorist organisation.

In a statement published by Qatar’s Foreign Ministry, the support for UNRWA is stated.

‘The Israeli parliament’s attempts to classify UNRWA as a terrorist organisation are “an extension of the systematic campaign aimed at dismantling the Agency at a time when the need for its humanitarian services is dire due to the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip,” the statement said.

Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry also denounced the move, saying UNRWA employees “are doing their duty to alleviate the severity of the humanitarian catastrophe that the Palestinian people are going through.”

UNRWA was established in 1949 by the UN General Assembly (UNGA) to provide relief to Palestinian refugees.

READ: UNRWA: Forced displacement pushed over 1m Palestinians out of Rafah

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