I told many United Nations countries Security Council They “denounce the depth” of the Israeli parliament’s decision to “cancel” the operations of the United Nations Aid Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, is scheduled to enter on Thursday.

In a joint statement, Belgium, Ireland, Luxembourg, Malta, Norway, Slovenia and Spain condemned the withdrawal of Israel from the 1967 agreement between Israel and UNRWA and any efforts to hinder the agency’s ability to work and fulfill its mandate from the United Nations General Assembly.

Philip Lazarini, UNRWA Commissioner -General, told the Security Council on Tuesday that the embargo “will increase instability and deepen despair in the occupied Palestinian territories at a critical moment.”

Kunesset agrees on bills to stop Annwa Aid

In October, the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, passed by two Bills Targeting the operations of the United Nations Relief and Business Agency for Palestinian refugees in the Near East.

The first draft law prohibits UNRWA activities within the borders of Israel, while the second makes it illegal to Israeli officials to have any contact with UNRWA. The legislation is scheduled to enter into force on Thursday.

UNRWA spokeswoman Juliet Toma expressed her concerns about the potential consequences of the ban, telling the island: “If the ban occurs and we are not able to work in Gaza and a ceasefire, which also includes bringing the humanitarian supplies to the agency and people in need, it may collapse.”

The first stage of the ceasefire, which started January 19It includes provisions for increasing assistance in the pocket of up to 600 trucks per day.

Israel’s banning would make the agency impossible to obtain any entrance permits to work in the West Bank and Gaza’s tape – both under Israeli control – in fact paralyzing the agency’s ability to implement its mandate.

What is UNRWA and where to do?

The UNRWA General Assembly was established in 1949 to provide humanitarian assistance to 750,000 Palestinian refugees who were uprooted from their lands during the establishment of Israel in 1948, a known event for the Palestinians in the name of NakbaOr “disaster”.

The organization – which employs 30,000 employees, especially Palestinian refugees, along with a small number of international employees – provides relief in emergency, education, health care and social services to at least 5.9 million Palestinians within the Palestinian countries and neighboring countries.

UNRWA runs 58 refugee camp, including:

• West Bank: 19 camps includes 912,879 registered refugees
• Gaza: Eight camps of 1.6 million people
• Jordan: 10 camps with 2.39 million people
• Lebanon: 12 camp, 489292 people
• Syria: Nine camps with 438,000 people

The role of UNRWA in Gaza and the West Bank

Over the course of generations, UNRWA was the main provider of health and educational services for millions of Palestinians living during the Israeli occupation era in Gaza, the West Bank and the occupation of East Jerusalem.

according to Lazzzarini: “The embargo will paralyze the humanitarian response in Gaza and deprive millions of Palestinian refugees of the basic services in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. They will also spend an audio witness on the endless horrors and the injustice that the Palestinians carry for decades.”

Inside Palestine, UNRWA offers free and secondary education for more than 300,000 children, including:

• 294,086 children in Gaza, or half of the students in the pocket
• 46,022 children in the West Bank

UNRWA also provides free primary health services for mothers, mothers and children to:

• 1.2 million people in Gaza – more than half of the population
• 894,951 people in the West Bank

UNRWA also provides food for:

• 1.13 million people in Gaza, or half of the population
• 23,903 people in the West Bank

UNRWA also plays an important role in providing job opportunities, microfinance programs and supporting income generation initiatives.

“The backbone of humanitarian operations” in Gaza

Among the regions under UNRWA’s mandate, the Gaza tape, with a population of 2.3 million people, has the highest dependence on the agency’s services to survive.

While other United Nations organizations such as UNICEF, the Humanitarian Coordination Office, the World Food Program and the World Health Organization, all provide life -saving services, UNRWA is the “backbone of humanitarian operations” in Gaza.

“All United Nations agencies are highly dependent on UNRWA for humanitarian operations, including bringing supplies and fuel. We are the largest humanitarian agency in Gaza.”

In January 2024, the Israeli authorities accused UNRWA by participating in attacks on October 7, 2023, in southern Israel. This is LED Several countries To reduce the organization’s financing.

However, yet investigation By the United Nations and the end of nine employees, all donors except the United States Sweden The financing resumed.

Since Israel began the genocide against the Palestinians in Gaza, its army killing At least 47,354 people and injured at least 111,563 others. Those who survived the conflict lost almost everything.

During the 15 -month war, UNRWA came up:

• Food aid: Food to 1.9 million people suffer from severe hunger
• health care: Primary health care consultations offered to 1.6 million people
• Mental health support: Mental health and psychological and social support provided 730,000 people
• water: Ensure access to clean water for 600,000 people
• Waste management: I collected more than 10,000 tons of solid waste of camps

According to UNRWA Story report272 UNRWA members were killed in 665 Israeli attacks and 205 UNRWA facilities were damaged.

What happens as soon as the ban is in effect?

Although Israel and the already hostile work environment, Lazzarini confirmed UNRWA’s commitment to “Stay and deliver”.

The first law, which was passed by Knesateet, prohibits any presence or activities in UNRWA inside Israel, which directly affects hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in occupied East Jerusalem, which Israel included in 1980 in violation of international law.

Then you have a second law that prevents any communication between Israeli officials and UNRWA officials. Lazarini said: “The law does not say that the activity in the West Bank or Gaza is stopped but prevents any contact – but the truth is that if you do not have a bureaucratic or administrative relationship, it makes your environment The operational is more challenging. “

The ban will also restrict the movement of non -Palestinian employees in UNRWA, although it will allow Palestinian employees to carry out their work.

“The agency is still determined to do everything in its power to fulfill its mandate and provide critical services to reduce the plight of the Palestinian refugees,” Lazarini stressed.

The best donors in UNRWA

In 2023, UNRWA received $ 1.46 billion In total pledges with the largest contributions coming from the United States ($ 422 million), Germany (212.9 million dollars) and the European Union ($ 120.2 million).

Funding requirements for 2025

UNRWA He says It needs $ 1.7 billion to meet the most important humanitarian needs than 1.9 million people in Gaza and 275,000 people in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

This includes:

• Food ($ 568.5 million): Nearly half of the Gaza population depends on UNRWA food aid. This funding will support the distribution of food to 1.13 million people in Gaza and more than 23,000 people in the West Bank.
• Water and sanitation ($ 282.6 million): These funds will go to ensure access to clean water and appropriate sewage, especially in Gaza, where the Israel war removed the water infrastructure.
• Coordination and management ($ 202.3 million): There is also a need for money to keep employees, logistics and coordination to provide aid effectively.

Funding is necessary to maintain life saving in UNRWA. Without it, critical services such as food aid, health care and water access can collapse, deepening the humanitarian crisis.