Israel forcibly removes students and shuts down UNRWA school in occupied Jerusalem

The Israeli authorities have forcibly removed students and shut down a school run by the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) in occupied Jerusalem, Wafa news agency has reported.

The Jerusalem governorate reported that Israeli occupation forces stormed the UNRWA-affiliated Jerusalem Boys’ Elementary School in Wadi Al-Joz district, and ordered staff to close the institution after forcibly removing students.

The move follows an order by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to enforce the ban on UNRWA operations in the city. Under the new restrictions, UNRWA activity within “areas under Israeli sovereignty” is now prohibited, including the operation of representative offices and providing services. Israelis are also prohibited from having any contact with the agency. Jerusalem was annexed by the occupation state in the 1980s, in a move which is not recognised by the majority of countries as annexation of territory acquired by force of arms is illegal under international law.

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In May 2024, the UNRWA management was forced to close the headquarters under the pressure of attacks by illegal settlers, which reached the point of its buildings being set on fire twice in one week. The Israel Lands Authority announced on 10 October last year the seizure of the land on which the UNRWA headquarters is located in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood of occupied East Jerusalem, and the transformation of the site into an illegal settlement outpost containing 1,440 housing units. All of Israel’s settlements and the settlers who live on them are illegal under international law.

The occupation regime also targeted the UNRWA Kalandia Training Centre (KTC), with the Israel Lands Authority issuing a decision on 14 January 2024 demanding that UNRWA vacate it and pay retrospective occupancy fees of 17 million shekels (about $4.76 million), on the pretext of constructing and using buildings without a permit.

UNRWA provides essential services, including humanitarian aid, healthcare and education, to more than 110,000 registered Palestinian refugees in Jerusalem alone. The UN agency operates two refugee camps, Shuafat and Kalandia, in the occupied city.

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