UNRWA Still Operating Despite Israel Ban

Nationalist Israeli activists hold an Israeli flag and spray paint on a sign as they celebrate a ban on UN Palestinian relief agency UNRWA's operations in Jerusalem and Israel, at the UNRWA headquarters in Jerusalem, January 30, 2025. REUTERS/Jamal Awad
Nationalist Israeli activists hold an Israeli flag and spray paint on a sign as they celebrate a ban on UN Palestinian relief agency UNRWA's operations in Jerusalem and Israel, at the UNRWA headquarters in Jerusalem, January 30, 2025. REUTERS/Jamal Awad
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UNRWA Still Operating Despite Israel Ban

Nationalist Israeli activists hold an Israeli flag and spray paint on a sign as they celebrate a ban on UN Palestinian relief agency UNRWA's operations in Jerusalem and Israel, at the UNRWA headquarters in Jerusalem, January 30, 2025. REUTERS/Jamal Awad
Nationalist Israeli activists hold an Israeli flag and spray paint on a sign as they celebrate a ban on UN Palestinian relief agency UNRWA's operations in Jerusalem and Israel, at the UNRWA headquarters in Jerusalem, January 30, 2025. REUTERS/Jamal Awad

The UN Palestinian relief agency UNRWA is continuing to deliver assistance and services in the Gaza Strip, West Bank and East Jerusalem on Thursday, said UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric as a ban on the agency in Israel came into effect.

Israel cut ties with the UN agency after accusing it of providing cover for Hamas militants.

UNRWA is banned from operating on Israeli soil, and contact between it and Israeli officials will also be forbidden.

UNRWA has provided support for Palestinian refugees around the Middle East for more than 70 years, but has long clashed with Israeli officials, who have repeatedly accused it of undermining the country's security.

The hostility intensified following Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, with accusations that UNRWA employees took part in the assault.

After the law came into effect, the Norwegian government said Thursday it would contribute $24 million to the UN agency.

"Gaza is in ruins, and UNRWA's help is more necessary than ever," Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide said.



Yemen's Houthis Launched Missile at US Fighter Jet, Missed

Houthi militants stormed the Greek tanker "Sunion" and rigged its deck with explosives before blowing it up (EPA)
Houthi militants stormed the Greek tanker "Sunion" and rigged its deck with explosives before blowing it up (EPA)
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Yemen's Houthis Launched Missile at US Fighter Jet, Missed

Houthi militants stormed the Greek tanker "Sunion" and rigged its deck with explosives before blowing it up (EPA)
Houthi militants stormed the Greek tanker "Sunion" and rigged its deck with explosives before blowing it up (EPA)

Yemen's Houthis launched surface-to-air missiles at an American fighter jet and MQ-9 Reaper drone this week, but did not hit either, two US officials told Reuters.

The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, did not specify if the attacks occurred over the Red Sea or Yemen itself.

One said the incidents could suggest the Houthis were improving their targeting capabilities.

Abdul Malik al-Houthi, who leads the Iran-backed group, said in a televised speech on Feb. 13 that the Houthis would intervene with missiles and drones and attack vessels in the Red Sea if the United States and Israel tried to remove Palestinians from Gaza by force.

An Israel-Hamas ceasefire took effect in Gaza on January 19 but has appeared close to collapse recently amid mutual accusations of violations.

US President Donald Trump has infuriated the Arab world with a plan to permanently displace Palestinians from Gaza and take over the enclave to turn it into a beach resort.

The Houthis have carried out more than 100 attacks on ships off Yemen since November 2023 in support of Gaza's Palestinian militants fighting Israel, disrupting global shipping.