https://arab.news/2tk7k
- Presidency spokesperson says Israel attempts to eliminate the refugee status for millions of Palestinians
- UNRWA ban will prevent millions from accessing health, education, and relief services
LONDON: The Palestinian Authority said on Wednesday that Israeli legislation prohibiting UNRWA — the UN agency that supports relief work for Palestinian refugees — from conducting activities in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem undermines international legitimacy.
Nabil Abu Rudeineh, the spokesperson for the Palestinian presidency, said that the banning of UNRWA is part of ongoing Israeli attempts to eliminate the refugee status for millions of Palestinians whose families fled their lands during the 1948 war in what became modern-day Israel.
He said that the Israeli decision coming into effect on Thursday will increase the suffering of nearly 6 million Palestinians who rely on UNRWA’s health, education, and humanitarian relief services in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem.
He added that such a decision challenges international legitimacy, international law, and the UN, the official Palestine News and Information Agency reported.
On Tuesday, the US Ambassador to the UN Dorothy Shea said during a Security Council meeting that her country supports “Israel’s sovereign decision.”
Philippe Lazzarini, the UNRWA chief, urged international leaders to block the Israeli decision that could undermine UN credibility and erode trust in the international community.