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Palestinian Official: Israel Still Controls Jerusalem UN Site
(MENAFN) Israel's withdrawal from the Qalandiya Training Center in East Jerusalem does not mean the country has relinquished effective control of the site or returned it to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, a Palestinian official said Saturday.
Omar al-Rajoub, director of the Jerusalem Governorate's media department, told media that indicators of Israeli control over the facility persisted even after Israeli forces pulled out.
Israeli troops had evacuated and seized the center on Tuesday, raising the Israeli flag in its courtyard before withdrawing Friday — a move that triggered widespread condemnation across the Arab world and internationally.
According to Rajoub, Israeli forces welded most of the center's entrances shut, leaving only a single small gate accessible, while personnel tied to the Israeli-run Jerusalem municipality kept working inside on renovations, maintenance and preparations. He said the military's departure from the building did not amount to a genuine end of control or a restoration of the site to UNRWA's management.
Rajoub added that Israeli authorities had also installed surveillance cameras throughout the center and left behind figures depicting soldiers in some of its rooms, even as municipal work continued. He characterized the measures as "dangerous indicators of an attempt to establish a new reality inside a UN facility," pointing to declared plans to repurpose the site under the guise of expanding educational and community services.
He warned that the fallout reaches beyond Qalandiya itself, threatening UNRWA's broader presence and its long-running mission serving Palestinian refugees. The center, established in 1952, trains hundreds of Palestinian refugees in vocational and technical skills each year.
Rajoub said a genuine Israeli withdrawal would require reopening the center and handing it back fully to agency control, halting all municipal activity inside it, and removing any equipment or surveillance devices installed during the occupation period.
Israeli forces left the center Friday afternoon, ending a four-day raid that followed a Monday visit to the site and the nearby Qalandiya refugee camp by representatives of 49 organizations and diplomatic missions accredited to Palestine. Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who took part in the raid, said there was "no place" for UNRWA in Jerusalem or Israel.
UNRWA condemned the Israeli actions at the training center on Saturday, denouncing the Aug. 25 raid and what it called unlawful conduct inside its buildings, while reaffirming its intent to fully resume educational activities there.
The incident adds to escalating Israeli pressure on the agency. The Knesset passed two laws in October 2024 curbing UNRWA's operations, including a ban on its activity inside Israel that took effect in early 2025. In October 2025, the International Court of Justice affirmed that Israel is obligated to respect the inviolability of UN premises, including UNRWA facilities, and to avoid interfering with the agency's property. Despite that pressure, the UN General Assembly renewed UNRWA's mandate for three more years in December 2025, extending its operations through June 2029.
UNRWA was created by the UN General Assembly in 1949 to assist and protect Palestinian refugees across five areas of operation: Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
Omar al-Rajoub, director of the Jerusalem Governorate's media department, told media that indicators of Israeli control over the facility persisted even after Israeli forces pulled out.
Israeli troops had evacuated and seized the center on Tuesday, raising the Israeli flag in its courtyard before withdrawing Friday — a move that triggered widespread condemnation across the Arab world and internationally.
According to Rajoub, Israeli forces welded most of the center's entrances shut, leaving only a single small gate accessible, while personnel tied to the Israeli-run Jerusalem municipality kept working inside on renovations, maintenance and preparations. He said the military's departure from the building did not amount to a genuine end of control or a restoration of the site to UNRWA's management.
Rajoub added that Israeli authorities had also installed surveillance cameras throughout the center and left behind figures depicting soldiers in some of its rooms, even as municipal work continued. He characterized the measures as "dangerous indicators of an attempt to establish a new reality inside a UN facility," pointing to declared plans to repurpose the site under the guise of expanding educational and community services.
He warned that the fallout reaches beyond Qalandiya itself, threatening UNRWA's broader presence and its long-running mission serving Palestinian refugees. The center, established in 1952, trains hundreds of Palestinian refugees in vocational and technical skills each year.
Rajoub said a genuine Israeli withdrawal would require reopening the center and handing it back fully to agency control, halting all municipal activity inside it, and removing any equipment or surveillance devices installed during the occupation period.
Israeli forces left the center Friday afternoon, ending a four-day raid that followed a Monday visit to the site and the nearby Qalandiya refugee camp by representatives of 49 organizations and diplomatic missions accredited to Palestine. Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who took part in the raid, said there was "no place" for UNRWA in Jerusalem or Israel.
UNRWA condemned the Israeli actions at the training center on Saturday, denouncing the Aug. 25 raid and what it called unlawful conduct inside its buildings, while reaffirming its intent to fully resume educational activities there.
The incident adds to escalating Israeli pressure on the agency. The Knesset passed two laws in October 2024 curbing UNRWA's operations, including a ban on its activity inside Israel that took effect in early 2025. In October 2025, the International Court of Justice affirmed that Israel is obligated to respect the inviolability of UN premises, including UNRWA facilities, and to avoid interfering with the agency's property. Despite that pressure, the UN General Assembly renewed UNRWA's mandate for three more years in December 2025, extending its operations through June 2029.
UNRWA was created by the UN General Assembly in 1949 to assist and protect Palestinian refugees across five areas of operation: Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
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