The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs is conducting negotiations with United Nations officials regarding the possibility of transferring responsibilities currently managed by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) to other UN agencies.
Two laws recently enacted by Israel targeting UNRWA, its activities and its staff in Gaza, the West Bank and Jerusalem, are set to come into effect within two weeks.
Following UN Secretary-General, António Guterres’ announcement rejecting any discussions with Israel about replacing UNRWA, the United States has stepped in to engage in such negotiations with Israel, instead. The aim is to find a temporary solution that would allow humanitarian activities to continue in Gaza. In parallel, the Biden administration is pressuring the United Nations to engage in talks with Israel over a provisional agreement to halt UNRWA’s operations.
One proposed solution under discussion involves allowing UNRWA staff to continue their work in Gaza under the supervision of another UN agency, such as the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). This plan also includes replacing UNRWA’s international directors, thereby formally ceasing its operations.
Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, passed legislation in October targeting UNRWA, accusing the Agency of colluding with Hamas. These unsubstantiated accusations, denied by UNRWA, have been repeatedly raised by Israel.
Israel has repeatedly equated UNRWA staff with Hamas members in efforts to discredit them, providing no proof of the claims, while lobbying hard to have UNRWA closed as it is the only UN agency to have a specific mandate to look after the basic needs of Palestinian refugees. If the agency no longer exists, argues Israel, then the refugee issue must no longer exist, and the legitimate right for Palestinian refugees to return to their land will be unnecessary. Israel has denied that right of return since the late 1940s, even though its own membership of the UN was made conditional upon Palestinian refugees being allowed to return to their homes and land.
The ban imposed on UNRWA operations is scheduled to take effect later this month.
READ: Dismantling UNRWA will be ‘catastrophic’ for Gaza and Palestinians: Expert