Israeli Knesset vote on UNRWA will deepen Palestinian suffering says Lazzarini

By Anjali Sharma

UNITED NATIONS – Head of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinians Philippe Lazzarini on Monday has warned that the vote by the Israeli Knesset banning the UN UNRWA contradicts principles of the UN Charter, violates Israel’s obligations under international law, and sets a dangerous precedent,.

Mr. Lazzarini said in a post on X that “This is the latest in the ongoing campaign to discredit UNRWA and delegitimize its role towards providing human-development assistance and services to Palestine refugees,” after reports of the long-anticipated vote being taken by Knesset members, passing by a margin on 92-10.

He added that the two bills which will reportedly come into effect within 90 days “will only deepen the suffering” of Palestinians, especially in Gaza where people have been going through “more than a year of sheer hell”.

“These bills increase the suffering of the Palestinians and are nothing less than collective punishment,” he said.

The entire population of the Gaza Strip depends on humanitarian assistance, with UNRWA as the “backbone” of UN’s relief efforts in the war-ravaged enclave.

UNRWA is crucial for overseeing the ongoing polio vaccination drive in addition to helping deliver food and other lifesaving essentials.

UNRWA’s importance has been reiterated by several countries and the Secretary-General, who has described the agency’s historic and leading humanitarian role as “irreplaceable”.

Mr. Lazzarini stated that putting an end to UNRWA and its services “will not strip the Palestinians from their refugee status”.

“That status is protected by another UN General Assembly resolution until a fair and lasting solution is found to the plight of the Palestinians,” he said.

“Failing to push back these bills will weaken our common multilateral mechanism established after World War Two,” he added.

UNRWA was established by the General Assembly in December 1949 “to carry out direct relief and works programmes” for Palestine refugees. It began its operations on 1 May 1950.

The acting head of UN aid coordination office, OCHA Joyce Msuya in a post on X, expressed her teams’ “full solidarity with UNRWA…whose work is essential to millions of Palestinians.”

Joyce Msuya added that the decision was “dangerous and outrageous. There is no alternative to UNRWA.”

Many world leaders expressed their grave concern over the ramifications of the move by Israeli parliamentarians, including nations of the EU, the British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and a Spokesperson for the State Department in Washington.