TANZANIA – The United Nations stressed Tuesday that if Israel puts in place new laws cutting ties with the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, the Israeli government will have to meet their needs under international law.
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a letter obtained by The Associated Press that there is no other alternative to the agency, known as UNRWA. It has been a lifeline during the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, and the Israeli legislation “will have devastating consequences for Palestinian refugees” in Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem, he said.
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The U.N. agencies for children, health and migration also stressed that UNRWA is the “backbone” of the world body’s operations in Gaza, where people have relied on its emergency food aid and health centers during the more than yearlong war, which has killed tens of thousands and left much of the enclave in ruins.
The United Nations is heartened by statements of support for UNRWA from all quarters and countries, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said, and “we would very much appreciate efforts by any member state to help us get over this hurdle.”
Israel has alleged that some of UNRWA’s 13,000 staffers in Gaza participated in the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks by Hamas that sparked the war. It's also accused hundreds of UNRWA staff of having militant ties and said it has found Hamas military assets in or under the agency’s facilities.
Israel's new laws
Two laws passed Monday could prevent UNRWA from continuing its work. Even the U.S., Israel's closest ally, joined many governments and humanitarian organizations in opposing the legislation, which doesn’t take effect for three months.
Guterres sent the letter Tuesday to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu outlining his concerns.
As an occupying power, under international humanitarian law, Israel is required to ensure the needs of the Palestinians are met, including for food, health care and education, Guterres said. And if Israel isn’t in a position to meet those needs, it has an obligation to allow and facilitate the activities of the U.N., and “UNRWA is the principal means by which assistance is supplied to Palestinian refugees,” he said.
If UNRWA's activities are restricted or halted, the secretary-general said, Israel would have to fill the vacuum “to ensure the needs of the population are met.”
“Otherwise, it would be in violation of international law,” said Dujarric, the U.N. spokesman.
Israel’s U.N. Ambassador Danny Danon responded to the letter by saying, “Rather than condemning UNRWA for turning a blind eye to terrorism and in some cases participating in terrorism, the U.N. instead condemns Israel.”
He claimed in a statement that UNRWA isn’t interested in providing humanitarian aid to Gaza, calling it “nothing but an arm of Hamas operating under the guise of the United Nations.”
“Israel will continue to facilitate humanitarian aid in Gaza according to international law,” Danon said, “but UNRWA has failed in its mandate and is no longer the right agency for this job.”
Dismay from U.N. agencies
World Health Organization spokesman Tarik Jasarevic said UNRWA health workers have provided over 6 million medical consultations over the past year. They also offered immunizations, disease surveillance and screening for malnutrition, and UNRWA’s work “couldn’t be matched by any agency — including WHO,” he said.
Jeremy Laurence, spokesman for the U.N. human rights office, said that “without UNRWA, the delivery of food, shelter, health care, education, amongst other things, to most of Gaza’s population would grind to a halt.”
UNRWA was established by the U.N. General Assembly in 1949 to provide relief for Palestinians who fled or were expelled from their homes before and during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war that followed Israel’s establishment, as well as their descendants.
Israel faces criticism
Timed to the Israeli laws, Norway announced Tuesday that it will ask the 193-nation General Assembly to request a ruling from the top United Nations court about whether Israel is obligated to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid to Palestinians by international organizations, including the U.N.
The International Court of Justice in July condemned Israel’s rule over the Palestinian territories, declaring its occupation unlawful. The nonbinding opinion called on Israel to end its occupation and immediately halt settlement construction.
Norway’s foreign minister, Espen Barth Eide, told the AP that Israel's policy is making it increasingly difficult for Palestinians to access life-saving assistance. He said Norway will argue that even if Israel's occupation is illegal, it has obligations, "and we believe that these are not met.”
Guterres told Netanyahu that while the Israeli laws prohibit any activity by UNRWA “within the sovereign territory of the State of Israel,” the U.N. considers Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem part of the occupied Palestinian territory and Israel has no sovereignty because of its occupation.
Meanwhile, at the U.N.’s regular Security Council meeting on the Middle East — this month open to all U.N. members — speakers supported UNRWA and virtually all called for immediate cease-fires in Gaza and Lebanon.
U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield expressed deep concern at the Israeli legislation, saying, “right now there is no alternative to UNRWA when it comes to delivering food and other life-saving aid in Gaza.”
She also called on Guterres “to create a mechanism to review and address allegations that UNRWA personnel have ties to Hamas and other terrorist groups.”
Dujarric, the U.N. spokesman, said its internal watchdog is working on that. He said a letter from the Israeli government last week raising specific undisclosed issues is also being looked at “extremely seriously.”
U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller went further, warning that the Israeli legislation “poses risks for millions of Palestinians who rely on UNRWA for essential services.”
Miller reiterated that the U.S. opposes the legislation and will be discussing it with Israel in the days ahead. He says there may be consequences under U.S. law and policy if it takes effect, referencing a letter that Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin sent to their Israeli counterparts saying humanitarian aid must increase or the country risks losing military assistance.
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Keaten reported from Geneva. Associated Press writer Matthew Lee contributed from Washington.