In a move that has sparked widespread international condemnation, the Israeli parliament has approved two new laws that ban the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) from operating in the occupied territories, including Gaza and East Jerusalem and prohibit Israeli officials from dealing with the agency’s employees, threatening the future of providing essential humanitarian assistance to some 2.4 million Palestinians living in catastrophic humanitarian conditions in the Gaza Strip.

According to Charles Michel, President of the European Council, “The decision made by parliament in Israel, if implemented, to ban UNRWA in Israel is absolutely not acceptable,” warning that the move could lead to a review of the EU-Israel trade association agreement, a key agreement that has linked the two parties since 2000.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres characterized Israel’s decision to ban UNRWA as “a dangerous precedent” that contradicts Israel’s international obligations, putting the lives of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank at increased risk. “There is no alternative to UNRWA for delivering essential services to millions of Palestinian refugees, and this decision will have devastating consequences,” he added.

UNRWA, established by the UN General Assembly in 1949, is a lifeline for some 5.8 million Palestinian refugees across the region, providing them with education, health care, and social assistance. Agency officials fear the new Israeli law could “liquidate the Palestinian cause by undermining the right of return” enshrined in UN General Assembly Resolution 194.

"UNRWA is indispensable in the Palestinian territories, it is the backbone of humanitarian work there," UNRWA spokesman Jonathan Fowler told AFP. He explained that Israel was seeking "to uproot Palestinians by obstructing the agency's services, which help keep the people of the besieged Gaza Strip alive."

Palestinian National Initiative Secretary-General Mustafa Barghouti has called on the international community to act decisively to prevent the implementation of the Israeli laws, asserting that “the attack on UNRWA is part of a broader policy aimed at erasing the right of Palestinians to return.” 

Barghouti emphasized that “the Israeli Knesset has no authority to nullify the work of an international agency established by a UN mandate, and this decision constitutes a blatant assault on the sovereignty of the United Nations.”

The international backlash is not limited to Europe and the United Nations; several Arab and European countries have denounced this step, viewing it as a flagrant violation of human rights and a deliberate obstruction of the international community’s efforts to provide protection and assistance to Palestinians. 

The Jordanian Foreign Ministry stated that “this decision is yet another attempt to eliminate the Palestinian cause, and the international community must counter it.”

Amid this escalation, concerns are mounting over the impact of the Israeli decision on Palestinian refugees in Gaza, whose daily hardships are worsened by ongoing bombardments and severe restrictions. 

As the two laws are set to take effect three months from now, questions remain about UNRWA’s ability to continue its humanitarian mission in the face of Israeli constraints and whether international pressure will be sufficient to compel Israel to reverse its decision.

Image caption: Israeli soldiers operate next to the UNRWA headquarters in the Gaza Strip, in February 2024 [File: Dylan Martinez/Reuters]