Israeli ban on UN Palestinian aid agency comes into effect

Israeli laws banning the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), which were passed last October, come into effect on Thursday.

The most immediate impact will be in east Jerusalem, which Israel annexed in a move not recognised by most of the international community. UNRWA's headquarters, which are located there, face an immediate shutdown.

But the bans also threaten to undermine UNRWA's operations across the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip, where it is the lifeline for some two million Palestinians, most of whom are homeless from the 15-month Israel-Hamas war.

Israel has long criticized UNRWA, contending it perpetuates Palestinians' refugee status. But the campaign against the agency has intensified from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other right-wing politicians since Hamas' 7 October attack on southern Israel.

Israeli claims that around a dozen of UNRWA’s 13,000 employees in Gaza participated in the attack and that many others support or sympathise with Hamas.

The agency denies knowingly aiding armed groups and says it acts quickly to purge any suspected militants among its staff.

How the laws will be implemented - and whether UNRWA operations will be forced to halt - is so far unclear and even UNRWA officials say they don’t know what will happen.

Some authorities said police on Thursday would shut down the agency’s headquarters and its installations in Israeli territory, which they say includes east Jerusalem.

But an Israeli government official with knowledge of the law’s details said there was no intention to physically shut down institutions, only that it will become harder for the agency to operate without coordination with Israeli authorities.

A total shutdown would end primary healthcare for up to 80,000 Palestinians in east Jerusalem through some two dozen medical centres, UNRWA officials say. It would also halt education and vocational training for up to 1,000 kids in the middle of a school year.

There are no municipal schools inside Shuafat camp, meaning kids who leave UNRWA schools would have to make their way in and out daily through the Israeli checkpoints to still unknown destinations.

The crackdown also threatens UNRWA's role as the backbone of humanitarian logistics in the region, aid workers say.

If the headquarters is shut down, there will be "very, very serious," social security implications, Jonathan Fowler, UNRWA’s senior communications manager, said from the east Jerusalem compound.

The agency provides a vast sweep of basic services to 1.1 million Palestinians in the West Bank and 2 million in Gaza.

During the Israel-Hamas war, it has been the main agency ensuring delivery of food, medical supplies and other aid that Gaza's population relies on to survive.

Israel claims aid support should be redirected to other UN agencies and other NGOs operating in Gaza.

Support from the US

US funding for the agency was suspended by the Biden administration in January 2024 following the accusations that UNWRA employees had taken part in the Hamas attack.

The funding freeze that went through the US Congress under Biden is set to last until March 2025. US backing of Israel was further bolstered after the recently elected Donald Trump administration said it supports its decision to close UNWRA's office, adding that the agency's alleged ties to Hamas have "tainted" its work and credibility.

US deputy Ambassador Dorothy Shea told an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council on Tuesday that there are other humanitarian organisations in Gaza with the experience and expertise to do UNRWA’s job.

“What is needed is a nuanced discussion about how we can ensure that there is no interruption in the delivery of humanitarian aid and essential services,” Shea said.