Israel Must Step in If It Bans the UN Agency That Is a Lifeline for Gaza, UN Says

A man squats by a wall bearing a mural representing the UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency) at the aid agency's center at the Nuseirat camp for Palestinian refugees in the central Gaza Strip on October 29, 2024. (AFP)
A man squats by a wall bearing a mural representing the UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency) at the aid agency's center at the Nuseirat camp for Palestinian refugees in the central Gaza Strip on October 29, 2024. (AFP)
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Israel Must Step in If It Bans the UN Agency That Is a Lifeline for Gaza, UN Says

A man squats by a wall bearing a mural representing the UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency) at the aid agency's center at the Nuseirat camp for Palestinian refugees in the central Gaza Strip on October 29, 2024. (AFP)
A man squats by a wall bearing a mural representing the UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency) at the aid agency's center at the Nuseirat camp for Palestinian refugees in the central Gaza Strip on October 29, 2024. (AFP)

The United Nations stressed Tuesday that if Israel puts in place new laws cutting ties with the UN 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.

The UN 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, UN 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 US, 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 UN, 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 UN spokesman.

Israel’s UN 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 UN 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 UN 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 UN 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 UN 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 UN.

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 UN 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 UN’s regular Security Council meeting on the Middle East — this month open to all UN members — speakers supported UNRWA and virtually all called for immediate ceasefires in Gaza and Lebanon.

US 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 UN 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.”

US 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 US opposes the legislation and will be discussing it with Israel in the days ahead. He says there may be consequences under US 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.



Iraq Preoccupied with Potential Broad Israeli Attack

Iraqi PM Mohammed Shi al-Sudani at an emergency national security council meeting. (Iraqi government)
Iraqi PM Mohammed Shi al-Sudani at an emergency national security council meeting. (Iraqi government)
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Iraq Preoccupied with Potential Broad Israeli Attack

Iraqi PM Mohammed Shi al-Sudani at an emergency national security council meeting. (Iraqi government)
Iraqi PM Mohammed Shi al-Sudani at an emergency national security council meeting. (Iraqi government)

Baghdad has been preoccupied this week with serious possibilities that Israel may expand its war on Gaza and Lebanon by striking several targets in Iraq in retaliation to attacks by Iran-backed armed factions.

Concern has been high that Israel may attack government buildings, oil fields and strategic locations, not just the positions of the armed factions that have previously launched attacks against Israel, said sources close to the pro-Iran ruling Coordination Framework.

Media sources have spoken of government speculation that Iraq could come under “300 Israeli attacks”.

The fears in Iraq have been compounded by an Israeli complaint to the United Nations Security Council against seven armed factions and holding Baghdad responsible for the attacks they have carried out against it.

This prompted the government, through the foreign ministry, to send an official letter to the Security Council, UN Secretary-General, Arab League and Organization of Islamic Cooperation in response to the Israeli threats.

The ministry said on Saturday that Iraq is “the cornerstone of stability in the region and world and it is one of the countries that are most committed to the UN Charter.”

“The Zionist entity’s letter to the Security Council is part of a systematic policy aimed at creating claims and excuses in an attempt to expand the conflict in the region.”

It said Iraq has turned to the Security Council out of Iraq’s keenness on the international body carrying out its duty in maintaining international peace and security and the need to rein in the “Zionist aggression in Gaza and Lebanon.”

Moreover, it stressed that Iraq has been keen on exercising restraint when it comes to the use of its airspace to attack a neighboring country.

Israel has used Iraqi airspace to launch attacks against Iran in October.

Iraq underscored the importance of the international community stepping in to “stop this hostile behavior that is a flagrant violation of international law.”

It called for international efforts to stop the Israeli escalation in the region and ensure that international laws and treaties are respected to consolidate security and stability.

Meanwhile, a source close to the Coordination Framework said the main Shiite parties are taking the Israeli threats “very seriously”, urging Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani's government to take “all the necessary measures to avert a potential Israeli strike.”

All leaders of armed factions, as well as Shiite leaders, have taken up alternative locations and are moving under great secrecy, confirming that they have changed the majority of their military positions, said the source.

It also dismissed claims that Israeli jets have overflown Iraq, saying nothing has been confirmed, but not ruling out the possibility, especially since US forces have control over Iraqi skies and Iraq is helpless against stopping these violations.

Iraq had submitted a formal complaint to the UN and Security Council over Israel’s use and violation of its airspace to attack Iran.

Analyst and former diplomat Ghazi Faisal said the pro-Iran armed factions have been gathering their forces in the Sinjar province, which is strategic for Iran’s arms deliveries and logistic support to Syria where attacks can be carried out against American forces and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

Sinjar is one of the most important strategic bases for the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps, he added.

Furthermore, he noted that the armed factions insist on continuing the war against Israel, rejecting government calls for calm and neutrality.

The government’s statements are aimed at delivering a message that it “is not directly responsible for the strategy of these factions,” which follow Iran’s policies.

Iraq has repeatedly said that it refuses for its territory to be used to attack another country, but some observers believe that it may allow Iran to do so should Israel strike.