UN company ban could be a blow to humanitarian work in Gaza if applied, consultants say | Picture credit score: AFP
Israel stated on Monday (Nov. 4, 2024) that it had formally notified the United Nations of its resolution to sever ties with UNRWA, the company that helps Palestinian refugees, after lawmakers voted to ban the group. .
“On the directions of Overseas Minister Israel Katz, the Ministry of Overseas Affairs notified the UN of the cancellation of the settlement between the State of Israel and UNRWA,” the Ministry of Overseas Affairs stated in an announcement.
“UNRWA, the group whose staff participated within the October 7 bloodbath and lots of of whose staff are Hamas brokers, is a part of the issue within the Gaza Strip and never a part of the answer,” Mr. Katz stated.
Israel’s parliament final month authorised a proposal to shut UNRWA operations in Israel and occupied East Jerusalem, regardless of condemnation from the worldwide group, together with its ally the USA.
The ban on the UN company, which has supplied important support and help within the Palestinian territories and to Palestinian refugees elsewhere for greater than seven a long time, could be a blow to humanitarian work in Gaza if applied, consultants say.
However Katz dismissed the argument, saying UNRWA was solely giving Gaza a part of the help.
“Even now, the overwhelming majority of humanitarian support to Gaza is delivered via different organizations, and solely 13 % is delivered via UNRWA,” Katz stated.
“The State of Israel is dedicated to worldwide legislation and can proceed to facilitate the entry of humanitarian support into the Gaza Strip in a way that doesn’t hurt the safety of the residents of Israel.”
In January, Israel accused a dozen UNRWA staff in Gaza of taking part within the Hamas assault on October 7, 2023, which sparked the deadliest struggle within the territory.
A sequence of investigations discovered some “issues associated to neutrality” at UNRWA and decided that 9 staff “might have been concerned” within the October 7 assault, however discovered no proof of Israel’s central accusations.
The ban has additionally raised fears that UNRWA staff within the occupied West Financial institution might face issues transferring from one location to a different, in addition to accessing East Jerusalem or Israel, as a result of they’d lose their capacity to coordinate with Israeli authorities to cross borders. checkpoints.
The identical fears apply to visas and permits issued by Israeli authorities.
UNRWA and different humanitarian businesses have accused Israeli authorities of limiting support flows to Gaza, the place nearly the entire territory’s 2.4 million folks have been displaced no less than as soon as through the struggle.
Revealed – Nov 04, 2024 01:16 pm IST
