The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), a subsidiary organ of the General Assembly, provides a lifeline for hundreds of thousands of Palestine refugees. Their dependency on UNRWA — and consequently the importance of the Agency’s work — is greater than ever before. In spite of this situation, or perhaps because of it, the Israeli Knesset on 28 October 2024 adopted legislation aimed at dismantling the Agency by effectively revoking its privileges and immunities.
Under the adopted legislation, UNRWA “shall not establish any representation, provide any services or conduct any activities” in the territory of Israel. No Israeli government agencies or representatives may have any contact with UNRWA. It is also reported that Israeli authorities are evicting the Agency from its premises in Jerusalem. The egregious nature of these breaches is compounded by the fact that they are being carried out in the context of Israel having over the last year physically destroyed numerous UNRWA buildings and killed more than 200 of its personnel.
