Chethana Janith, Jadetimes Staff
C. Janith is a Jadetimes news reporter covering science and geopolitics.
Israel’s parliament has voted to ban a United Nations agency that has provided crucial services to Palestinian refugees for nearly eight decades, a decision that could have serious consequences for millions of Palestinians living under Israeli control.
On Monday, the Knesset passed two bills: one that prohibits the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) from operating within Israel, and another that prevents Israeli authorities from engaging with UNRWA. This effectively revokes the 1967 treaty that had allowed the agency to assist Palestinian refugees in areas under Israel’s jurisdiction.
These measures are expected to significantly hinder UNRWA’s ability to operate in regions occupied by Israel, including Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem.
Under the new law, all communication between Israeli officials and the UN agency will end three months from Monday. The 1967 treaty will officially expire within seven days of the bill’s passing, once Israel’s foreign minister informs the UN of the decision to terminate the agreement.
After the first bill was passed, Boaz Bismuth, a member of the Likud party who spearheaded the legislation, stated, “Anyone that behaves like a terrorist has no rights in Israel… UNRWA equals Hamas, period.”
Despite strong opposition from Arab members of the Knesset and significant pressure from Western nations, the legislation advanced. The first bill passed with 92 votes in favor and 10 against, while the second received 87 votes in favor and 9 against.
UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini condemned the vote, calling it a violation of international law and part of a broader campaign to undermine the agency and its mission of supporting Palestinian refugees.
Several nations, including the United States, voiced serious concerns about the ban. Before the vote, the US State Department had urged Israel to reconsider, emphasizing the agency’s essential role in Gaza. Secretary of State Antony Blinken previously cautioned that the legislation could have significant consequences for US law and policy.
In response to these concerns, Knesset member Yuli Edelstein insisted that the move would not disrupt humanitarian aid to Gaza and emphasized that Israel was acting within the bounds of international law.
Israel has long advocated for the dismantling of UNRWA, claiming that some of its staff members are linked to Hamas and that its educational materials promote anti-Israel sentiments. UNRWA has consistently denied these allegations, asserting that there is no basis for broadly labeling the entire organization as compromised.
Here’s what we know about UNRWA and the potential impact of the Israeli ban.
Understanding UNRWA and Its Role
UNRWA was established by the United Nations in 1949, a year after the creation of Israel, which resulted in the displacement of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in what they refer to as the “Nakba” (catastrophe).
Initially created to assist around 750,000 Palestinian refugees in 1950, UNRWA now supports approximately 5.9 million individuals across the Middle East. Many of these refugees reside in camps located in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, East Jerusalem, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria.
In the Gaza Strip, which has endured prolonged conflict and devastation, UNRWA aids about 1.7 million Palestinian refugees. In the West Bank and East Jerusalem, it provides assistance to around 871,500 refugees.
The agency offers a comprehensive range of services, including shelter, healthcare, food, and education, and it plays a crucial role in employing refugees. With over 30,000 staff members across the Middle East, most of whom are Palestinian refugees, UNRWA also maintains offices in New York, Geneva, and Brussels.
More than 13,000 of its employees work in Gaza, while nearly 4,000 are based in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
UNRWA is distinct as the only UN agency dedicated to a specific refugee population within designated areas. Although it provides essential support to Palestinian refugees, it does not have the authority to resettle them. That responsibility lies with the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), which handles global refugee resettlement but does not operate in UNRWA’s areas of jurisdiction.
Why does Israel want to ban UNRWA?
Israel has long opposed UNRWA and has aimed to dismantle the agency even before October 7 of last year, when Hamas-led militants killed 1,200 people in Israel and took over 250 hostages. Israeli officials have disputed UNRWA’s criteria for defining Palestinian refugees, arguing that descendants of those displaced in 1948 should not qualify for refugee status and, therefore, do not have the right to return to their ancestral homes in present-day Israel.
A member of the Israeli parliament who supported the bills accused UNRWA on Sunday of promoting hatred toward Israel and spreading antisemitism.
“UNRWA… is selling them (Palestinians) stories that they will be able to come back to Israel. This will not happen,” Yulia Malinovsky, a lawmaker from the Israel Beitenu party, stated on Sunday.
Since the conflict began, Israel has intensified its efforts to discredit UNRWA, including claims that some of the agency's employees were connected to Hamas’ attack and participated in various capacities.
UNRWA has firmly denied the allegations, but several countries, including the United States, suspended funding to the agency earlier this year while investigations were conducted. In January, UNRWA terminated the contracts of those identified by Israel and initiated its own inquiry into the accusations. Although most nations have since resumed their financial support, the United States, which is the agency's largest donor, has not yet done so.
UNRWA reported that, as of October 20 this year, 233 of its staff members had been killed. Last month, the agency announced that one of its employees “was shot and killed on the roof of his home by a sniper during an overnight Israeli military operation” in El Far’a Camp in the occupied West Bank. This incident marked the first time in over a decade that a member of UNRWA had been killed in the West Bank, according to the agency.
Impact of UNRWA's Ban
UN Secretary-General António Guterres emphasized earlier this month that UNRWA is “indispensable… and irreplaceable” amid ongoing turmoil. He expressed his concerns in a letter to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, warning that the proposed legislation would “suffocate efforts to ease human suffering and tensions in Gaza and the entire Occupied Palestinian Territory.”
Guterres called the potential impact “a catastrophe” in an already dire situation. However, his appeals have largely been ignored, and he has been declared persona-non-grata by Israel, whose officials accuse him of being biased against the country.
UNRWA is the main humanitarian aid provider in Gaza, where nearly 2 million people depend on its services. The agency supplies food, healthcare, education, and psychological support, with 1 million people relying on its shelters. Alongside the Palestinian Red Crescent, UNRWA manages the distribution of nearly all UN aid entering Gaza, including operating 11 food centers for those living in extreme poverty.
UNRWA has also supported emergency health campaigns, such as a polio vaccination drive, which was recently disrupted due to violence in northern Gaza, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
In the West Bank, UNRWA serves 19 refugee camps and runs over 90 schools and multiple healthcare facilities, offering services like prenatal care. It also provides food supplies, emergency cash grants, and shelter assistance.
If UNRWA were unable to continue its work, it is unclear who would step in to assist the millions of Palestinian refugees who rely on its aid. Israel has previously pushed for merging UNRWA’s duties with those of the UNHCR. The US State Department has warned that banning the agency would leave a humanitarian gap that Israel would have to fill.
Aida Touma-Suleiman, an Israeli-Arab politician from the Arab-majority Hadash party, stated that the legislation reflects a long-standing goal of the Israeli right to strip Palestinian refugees of their status. “Israel is in effect creating new refugees every day while questioning the legitimacy of that very status,” she commented on social media.
International Reactions
On Monday, foreign ministers from seven countries - Canada, Australia, France, Germany, Japan, South Korea, and the United Kingdom - urged Israel to stop the legislation, expressing “grave concern” over its potential impact.
“UNRWA provides essential and life-saving humanitarian aid and basic services to Palestinian refugees in Gaza, East Jerusalem, the West Bank, and throughout the region,” the ministers stated in a joint declaration.
Even though the United States has suspended funding to UNRWA, it has also opposed the ban. Earlier this month, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin wrote to senior Israeli officials, expressing the Biden administration’s “deep concern” over the proposed legislation.
Ireland, Norway, Slovenia, and Spain similarly condemned the ban, warning in a joint statement that it “sets a very serious precedent for the work of the United Nations and for all organizations in the multilateral system,” as shared by Irish Foreign Minister Micheál Martin.
Germany’s Human Rights Commissioner, Luise Amtsberg, cautioned that if these laws are enforced, they would “effectively make UNRWA’s work in Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem impossible,” describing this as “a fatal step.”
The United Kingdom also highlighted Israel’s international obligation to ensure adequate aid reaches Gaza’s civilians. British Foreign Minister David Lammy emphasized that UNRWA is the only organization capable of delivering humanitarian aid “at the scale and speed needed.”
UNRWA’s Commissioner-General, Philippe Lazzarini, has called on UN member states to intervene, warning that the ban could have devastating consequences for the entire region. He stated that UNRWA’s mission to provide healthcare, education, and food for millions of Palestinian refugees “may become impossible without decisive action from the General Assembly,” as outlined in a letter to the UN General Assembly president.
Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) joined the chorus of humanitarian organizations condemning the ban. Christopher Lockyear, MSF’s Secretary General, remarked that the decision is the culmination of a sustained campaign against UNRWA and will have “long-term consequences impacting generations to come.”
