Israeli occupation initiates significant actions against United Nations Relief
Date
10/30/2024 8:06:48 AM
(MENAFN) The Israeli Occupation has initiated significant actions against the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), with the intent of dismantling the agency and resolving the refugee issue by suspending its operations in occupied Jerusalem. This initiative is part of a larger strategy aimed at Judaizing and consolidating control over the city, prompting widespread international condemnation and urgent calls for the reversal of this decision.
The implications of this move present a serious threat to UNRWA's future in the occupied Palestinian territories. Shuttering the agency's offices and halting its activities will directly impact the UNRWA center located in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of occupied Jerusalem, as well as the schools and clinics it manages. Approximately 200,000 Palestinian refugees in the area rely heavily on the educational, health, and social services provided by the agency.
This decision also endangers the education of over 650,000 children in the region, jeopardizing the prospects of an entire generation of Palestinian youth who risk losing their access to schooling. The Israeli Knesset has enacted this decision through legislation that contradicts previous commitments made by the occupying authorities to facilitate UNRWA’s work. According to these agreements, Israel is required to safeguard the agency’s headquarters, ensure the freedom of movement for its personnel, and grant the necessary protections for their operations, in addition to adhering to UN Resolution 194, which mandates the continuation of UNRWA's services until the Palestinian refugee issue is resolved.
As a result of the Israeli government's actions, immediate practical consequences are expected. Restrictions on UNRWA’s operations in the occupied territories and Jerusalem will likely be enforced swiftly, with police instructed to close the agency’s offices and schools across the city and its neighborhoods.
These measures effectively pave the way for the removal of UNRWA from the occupied Palestinian territories, including the termination of lease agreements for its facilities in Sheikh Jarrah, Kafr Aqab, and the Shuafat refugee camp, which remains one of the last support structures for refugees in Jerusalem. The ramifications of these decisions will be significant, potentially affecting around 110,000 Palestinian refugees who depend on UNRWA’s educational institutions, clinics, and relief services.
This escalating situation underscores the urgent need for international intervention and support for Palestinian refugees, as their access to essential services becomes increasingly compromised by political actions designed to diminish their presence and rights in their homeland.
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