At the meeting of the United Nations Security Council on April 17, Head of the Relief and Employment Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East of the United Nations UNRWA – Mr. Philippe Lazzarini said that Israel is preventing humanitarian cargo operations in the Gaza Strip and seek to end UNRWA’s activities in the strip.
Head of UNRWA Philippe Lazzarini (left) and Israeli Ambassador Gilad Erdan at the Security Council session on the situation in the Middle East. Photo: UN
“Today, a covert campaign to end UNRWA is underway, with serious implications for international peace and security. UNRWA is under enormous pressure, facing a campaign to be pushed out of the occupied Palestinian territories. In Gaza, Israel is seeking to end UNRWA’s activities. The agency’s requests to provide aid to the northern Gaza region were repeatedly denied. Our employees are prohibited from participating in coordination meetings between Israel and humanitarian organizations. Worse, UNRWA facilities and staff have been targeted since the beginning of the conflict,” Mr. Lazzarini said.
Earlier that day, the US State Department also received reports that a number of UNRWA employees were being detained and treated poorly by Israel. Since the conflict broke out, 178 UNRWA staff have been killed. The US is deeply concerned about the report and asks Israel to explain, while reiterating its call to ensure the safety of humanitarian relief workers in Gaza.
At the Security Council meeting, US Deputy Ambassador Robert Wood also emphasized: “We recognize UNRWA’s indispensable role in distributing humanitarian aid and maintaining continuity of care in Gaza. . We call for action to see UNRWA continue its activities in Gaza and to lift restrictions on its work. The US is really concerned about the serious food insecurity in Gaza. And it is the very real risk of famine that shows how important it is for UNRWA to prevent this.”
Also according to UNRWA, many infants and young children in Gaza are beginning to die from malnutrition and dehydration. However, large amounts of food and clean water are still “waiting” outside Gaza without permission from Israel.
However, Israeli Ambassador Gilad Erdan alleged that the real purpose of UNRWA’s activities is not humanitarian aid and education. He accused UNRWA of creating a sea of Palestinian refugees and of teaching Palestinians that Israel belongs to them.
“UNRWA is the world’s largest advocate of a one-state solution. I repeat, it is an organization that supports the solution of a single Palestinian state in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Israel cannot and will not allow UNRWA to continue operating in Gaza as before. I would like to emphasize that there are alternatives to UNRWA,” Mr. Erdan said.
In January, Israel also accused dozens of UNRWA employees in the Gaza Strip of being involved in the Hamas attack on Israeli territory on October 7. Immediately after that, many countries cut financial support for this agency, but after an investigation and dismissal of UNRWA staff, most countries resumed financial support for this agency, due to fears of crisis. The humanitarian crisis worsened in Gaza. Yesterday, Algeria also awarded a special fund worth 15 million USD for UNRWA to operate.
