UNRWA alleges Israeli takeover of agency buildings in East Jerusalem
Wire desk byline Sourced from Xinhua, Dawn, Arab News, Anadolu and Minute Mirror. Translated and abridged by the GSRRA Desk.
‘These are not UNRWA properties, but privately owned properties for which the municipality has signed a usage agreement,’ Jerusalem Municipality says
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian refugees claims that Israel is taking over buildings that belong to the agency in the Shuafat refugee camp in East Jerusalem. The Jerusalem Municipality denied the allegation.
According to a UNRWA statement, shared by its West Bank director Roland Friedrich on X on Thursday, “Personnel associated with the Jerusalem Municipality have in recent days entered UNRWA facilities without authorization, including the school compound, health center, and community services office.”
The Jerusalem Municipality told The Times of Israel that “these are not UNRWA properties, but privately owned properties for which the municipality has signed a usage agreement.”
“According to the owners of these properties, UNRWA itself unlawfully took control of them and did not pay [rent] during this period. The municipality intends to open educational institutions at the site for the benefit of residents of the surrounding neighborhoods,” the municipality said.
UNRWA stated in its statement that the premises were forcibly entered by breaking the locks and that contractors working on behalf of the municipality had begun work at the sites. The agency asserted that the moves violate international law protecting UNRWA property.
In late 2024, Israel passed legislation banning UNRWA from operating in Israeli territory, including East Jerusalem, alleging that the UN agency was riddled with Hamas terrorists and fomenting anti-Israel sentiment in its schools.
Following the legislation, Israel shut down UNRWA schools in the Shuafat refugee camp and other parts of East Jerusalem, leaving several hundred students without educational institutions.
Israel has repeatedly alleged and shown evidence that employees of the UN agency were actively involved in terror groups in the Gaza Strip, and some participated in the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led invasion and slaughter.
In June, amid Israeli accusations that UN staffers were Hamas operatives, UNRWA fired 70 Gaza employees “to mitigate safety and security risks for the refugees” without mentioning the name of the terror group.
Israel has also long accused the agency’s schools of inciting hatred of Israel and glorification of attacks against Israelis.
Reference Link:- https://www.timesofisrael.com/unrwa-alleges-israel-takeover-of-agency-buildings-in-east-jerusalem/
Zamir Ahmed Awan is the founder and Chair of the Global Silk Route Research Alliance, a think tank in Islamabad. He studied engineering at Shanghai University in the 1980s, and years later he went back to China as Pakistan's science counsellor in Beijing, from 2010 until 2016, working on science and higher education cooperation between the two countries.…
