The EU cannot stand idle as Israel dismantles Gaza’s lifeline: UNRWA

As the EU Foreign Affairs Council convenes today, European leaders face a pressing choice: will they stand by as Israel dismantles UNRWA, a lifeline for over 2.5 million Palestinian refugees, or will they act before time runs out? With only 63 days left before Israel’s new legislation halts UNRWA operations within its so-called “sovereign territory”, including unlawfully occupied Palestinian territory, European leaders must act to prevent an irreversible humanitarian crisis.

The consequences of such an act will not only be detrimental to any negotiated political solution grounded in Palestinians’ right to self-determination, but they would reverberate throughout our shared international commitments, weakening the principles that the United Nations, and indeed the European Union, stand to uphold.

The Knesset’s 20 October bills ban Israeli officials from interacting with UNRWA, halt its operations, and void a 1967 agreement, jeopardising essential services for millions of Palestinian refugees and threatening hundreds of schools, clinics and shelters.

UNRWA operates 384 schools, serving over 342,000 students across the occupied territories, and operates dozens of health clinics that see millions of patients visits every year. In Gaza alone, where the agency provides emergency food, healthcare and shelter to a beleaguered population, UNRWA’s work is not simply a service; it is survival.

‘We will die from hunger’: Gazans decry Israel’s UNRWA ban

Israel based human rights organisation Adalah, a key member of EuroMed Rights, issued a formal letter to the Knesset, stressing that the proposed legislation against UNRWA directly threatens the rights and welfare of Palestinian refugees, underscoring Israel’s ongoing attempts to dismantle Palestinian refugees’ legal protections.

Israel has long sought to erase the issue of Palestinian refugees from the international agenda, and the recent bills are just the latest act in a systematic campaign to do so. Israeli officials openly admit that these bills are intended to prevent any discussion of the Palestinian right of return. The right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes is enshrined in the UN General Assembly resolution 302 (IV) that mandates UNRWA since 1949. Therefore, the bills do not merely halt the operations of UNRWA, but dismantle the body that protects Palestinian refugees, effectively erasing their right to return to their ancestral homeland.

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The justification for this action rests on a small number of accusations against individual UNRWA employees, out of a staff of 30,000 and allegations of the military use of UNRWA premises by Palestinian armed groups. In Gaza, now a combat zone under widespread evacuation orders, verification of these claims is impossible. Israeli authorities are capitalising on recent conflicts to push through longstanding political goals. But make no mistake: the goal is not accountability; it is erasure of Palestinians.

Read: By criminalising UNRWA, Israel is delegitimising the United Nations

The EU’s moral obligation

The EU has both a moral and legal responsibility here. As a major supporter of UNRWA – a legitimate construct of international law and its order – the European Union and its member states have an obligation to prevent the complete destabilisation of essential services in Gaza and the West Bank, services that the EU itself has identified as crucial to peace and stability.

Commissioner-designate Dubravka Suica recently affirmed during her hearing that the EU’s commitment to continuing its support for UNRWA, following the review that was conducted by independent actors. The EU and its Member States bear a responsibility vis a vis its citizens and taxpayers. Together, they fund around 60 per cent of UNRWA, which sustains crucial services that protect Palestinian lives in the face of unimaginable hardship. If Israel pursues its intentions unchallenged, it will be not only an incredible waste of efforts and resources, but also of a considerable amount of taxpayers’ money.

The humanitarian catastrophe resulting from this legislation would deepen Israel’s existing violations of ICJ rulings. In January, the ICJ issued provisional measures, ordering Israel to ensure unimpeded humanitarian access to Gaza. Yet, by obstructing UNRWA, Israel is not only violating these measures but actively worsening conditions that have been classified as potential genocidal acts under the 1948 Genocide Convention. There is no replacement for UNRWA’s work, nor has Israel proposed an alternative plan for the 2.5 million refugees it serves. As an occupying power, Israel is legally bound under the Hague Regulations and the Fourth Geneva Convention to maintain public order and ensure access to essential services in occupied territories. No other institution could feasibly reopen the 691 schools in Gaza in the aftermath of war. Yet, Israel’s refusal to meet these responsibilities speaks volumes. It does not merely fail to uphold the law, it dismisses it outright.

The international community cannot allow Israel to dismantle UNRWA while hiding behind claims of security concerns. The EU, as a critical funder of UNRWA and a steadfast advocate for human rights, must hold Israel accountable.

Israel’s legislative attack on UNRWA is an attack on every principle the EU claims to uphold. The disintegration of the international order may feel abstract until we recognise that, with each unpunished violation, we inch closer to a world where no rules govern conflict. Today, as the international community’s gaze is fixed on Gaza, Europe must stand for accountability, for human rights and for the children whose futures depend on it.

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.