'Israel goes after UNRWA in al-Quds, orders it to vacate headquarters

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Israeli media + Agencies
30 May 2024 17:00
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An Israeli government entity has issued a letter to UNRWA, instructing it to vacate its al-Quds premises and demanding over $7.5 million in compensation.

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Palestinians demonstrate in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip calling for continued international support to UNRWA on January 30, 2024. (AFP)

The "Israel Land Authority" has notified UNRWA that it must leave its al-Quds location in the Ma’alot Dafna neighborhood within 30 days, as per Israeli Ynet news site. This follows Housing Minister Yitzhak Goldknopf's approval of a directive to expel the UN agency for allegedly using "state land" without authorization.

Goldknopf announced on Wednesday that the decision, initially proposed in February, had been approved by his ministry’s legal advisor.

In a letter sent to UNRWA on Tuesday, the ILA stated that the agency owes NIS 27,125,280 ($7,326,711.19) for allegedly using land owned by "Israel" without authorization for the past seven years.

Additionally, the letter instructed the agency that it was “required to immediately stop any illegal use, destroy everything you have built in violation of the law, vacate the land of any people or items and return it to the [ILA] within 30 days from the date of this letter,” as per Israeli media.

Back in May, the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees reported that it was temporarily shutting down its headquarters in the eastern part of occupied al-Quds after Israeli extremists set fire to the perimeter following weeks of repeated attacks.

At the time, the Agency Chief Philippe Lazzarini said on X, "This evening, Israeli residents set fire twice to the perimeter of the UNRWA headquarters in occupied east Jerusalem."

He further lamented that it was the second attack on the compound in a matter of days.

The attack came after two months of "Israeli extremists staging protests outside the UNRWA compound," he said, adding that one protest earlier this week "became violent when demonstrators threw stones at UN staff and at the buildings of the compound."

A flashback

UNRWA, which coordinates nearly all aid to besieged Gaza, has been in crisis since January, when "Israel" accused about a dozen of its 13,000 Gaza employees of being involved in the October 7 events.

Despite the unverified Israeli allegations, this led many donor nations, including its top donor the United States, to suspend funding to the agency, threatening its efforts to deliver desperately needed aid in Gaza, although several have since resumed payments. However, many reinstated funding, in defiance of the US, as no evidence regarding the claims was submitted.

UNRWA facing 'assassination attempt': Jordanian FM

Last week, Jordanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Ayman Safadi reaffirmed his country's continuing support for the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, despite a campaign spearheaded by "Israel" against the institution.

In a joint news conference with UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini, Safadi expressed that UNRWA is "fulfilling its duty in Gaza despite the aggression on the Strip," explaining that its role in the area cannot be "replaced or dispensed with by any other entity."

He went on to say that UNRWA has all the tools it needs to ensure that it follows all work principles, ethics, and UN charters and regulations, citing an investigation by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna, which discovered that "Israel" possesses no evidence of UNRWA collaborating with the Palestinian Resistance.

Safadi described what he called a “political assassination attempt” following October 7, detailing that all accusations made by the Israeli occupation have no evidence.

Still, the agency "faces significant financial challenges,” he remarked.

Safadi claimed that supporting UNRWA is a "consistent Jordanian" priority for the Jordanian King, Abdullah II.

Moreover, the Jordanian Foreign Minister called for an international probe into Israeli “war crimes” in the besieged Gaza Strip, saying those responsible for documented crimes should be brought to justice.

"Many and documented war crimes have been committed in the Gaza Strip,” Safadi said.

“We demand a comprehensive international investigation, which will stop these war crimes and which will bring to justice those responsible for these crimes or prove who is responsible for these crimes,” he added.

On his part, the UNRWA chief thanked Jordan for its support for the agency and its solidarity with Palestinian refugees.

Lazzarini stressed that despite all the international community's calls, "Israel" invaded and attacked the southernmost Gaza city of Rafah on May 6, with half of Gaza's population forced to flee.