What is Unrwa and why has Israel's parliament voted to ban it?

Israel’s parliament has passed bills banning the UN agency for Palestinian refugees from operating in Israel and the Palestinian territories, designating it a terror organisation, and cutting all ties between the agency and the Israeli government.

What is Unrwa?

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees is the main refugee agency for Palestinians and operates across the Middle East.

It was originally set up in 1948 to support 700,000 Palestinians displaced in the war that saw Israel established, and provides services education, health care, relief and social services, camp infrastructure and runs shelters during periods of conflict.

Its operations are spread across the occupied West Bank – including East Jerusalem – and the Gaza Strip, as well as Syria, Lebanon and Jordan.

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It is funded largely by voluntary contributions from UN member states, and also receives some funding directly from the UN. Employing 30,000 Palestinians, it serves almost 6 million refugees, including in Gaza where 1,476,706 Palestinians are registered as refugees in eight Palestinian refugee camps, while in the West Bank 800,000 are registered.

During the current conflict in Gaza almost the entire population of Gaza has been reliant on Unrwa for basic necessities, including food, water and hygiene supplies. More than 200 Unrwa staff have been killed in Israeli attacks during the year-long war.

Why has Israel’s parliament voted to ban it?

On Monday 92 Israeli MPs voted for a measure to ban Unrwa’s activities in Israel while only 10 voted to oppose the measure. A second bill severed diplomatic relations with the agency.

Israel has long complained that Unrwa is obsolete and its continuing support of the descendants of those initially displaced in 1948 is an impediment to a peace settlement.

Critics say that Israel’s own actions – not least its failure to meaningfully accept the foundation of a Palestinian state, and continued settlement activity on lands intended for that Palestinian state – represent the most significant obstacle to peace.

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During the current conflict with Hamas, Israel also has repeatedly claimed that Unrwa has employed militants from Hamas.

The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has in the past called on the US – Israel’s top ally and the agency’s biggest donor – to roll back its support, saying the agency is “perforated by Hamas”.

A six-page Israeli dossier shared with the US accused 12 Unrwa staff members of taking part in the 7 October 2023 attacks, including nine who it said worked as teachers in the agency’s schools.

The dossier said Israel also had wider evidence that Unrwa has employed 190 Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants, which would represent 0.64% of the total Unrwa staff if true. The agency fired nine employees after an investigation but denied it knowingly aids armed groups.

Unrwa, however, has long shared the list of its staff with Israel. Speaking earlier this year, the spokesperson for the UN secretary-general, António Guterres, reiterated the currency of this arrangement.

What does the new Israeli law mean?

Under the laws – which will not be implemented for several months – Unrwa could not “operate any institution, provide any service, or conduct any activity, whether directly or indirectly”.

Opponents charge that would imperil the already fragile process for distributing aid in Gaza at a moment when Israel is under increased US pressure to ramp up aid.

While most of Unrwa’s activities take place in the West Bank and Gaza, it is hugely dependent on an agreement with Israel to operate, including access to border crossings into Gaza including for humanitarian aid.

The legislation does not include provisions for alternative organisations to oversee its work.

What do other countries say?

The move is strongly opposed by numerous governments as well as international aid groups. They say that Israel has not only offered no suggestion of what could replace Unrwa [nothing was mentioned during the debate on the bill] but has consistently failed to articulate a “day after” plan for Gaza for when the conflict ends.

The US state department spokesperson, Matthew Miller, speaking to reporters in Washington on Monday, said the Biden administration was “deeply concerned” by the legislation. “There’s nobody that can replace them right now in the middle of the crisis,” he said.

Unrwa condemned the Knesset’s approval of the bill.

“These bills will only deepen the suffering of Palestinians, especially in Gaza where people have been going through more than a year of sheer hell,” wrote Philippe Lazzarini, Unrwa’s commissioner general, in a statement on X. “It ⁠will deprive [more than] 650,000 girls and boys there from education, putting at risk an entire generation of children. These bills increase the suffering of the Palestinians and are nothing less than collective punishment.” - The Guardian