Israel bans Unrwa relief agency in defiance of US

Israel's parliament has voted to ban the United Nations Relief and Works Agency from the country within 90 days, in defiance of US and other international pressure to maintainthe largest provider of humanitarian assistance to the country's Palestinian population.

- Andrew Roth

In a 92-10 vote late yesterday, the Knesset banned Unrwa, which operates in Israel according to a 1967 treaty, from conducting "any activity" or providing any service inside Israel, including the areas of annexed East Jerusalem, Gaza and the West Bank.

Israeli lawmakers also voted to declare Unrwa a terror group, in effect banning any direct interaction between the UN agency and the Israeli state.

Taken together, the legislation is expected to lead to the closure of Unrwa's East Jerusalem headquarters and would block the delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza via Rafah.

The severing of diplomatic relations would preclude Israel from issuing entry and work 2 permits to foreign Unrwa staff and prevent coordination with the Israeli military to permit aid shipments. More than 1.9 million Palestinians are displaced and the Gaza strip faces widespread shortages of food, water and medicine.

"It's outrageous that a member state of the United Nations is working to dismantle a UN agency which also happens to be the largest responder in the humanitarian operation in Gaza," said Juliette Touma, a spokesperson for Unrwa.

The US state department spokesman Matthew Miller said at a daily briefing that Washington was "deeply concerned" about the vote and had urged Israel to "pause implementation" of the legislation, which could "have implications under US law".