The proposal has been approved by a large majority of parliament, including some opposition parties.
The Knesset, or Israeli parliament, this Monday approved a law banning all activities of the United Nations Refugee Agency in the Near East (UNRWA), both in Israel and the Palestinian territories.
A total of 92 of the 120 deputies of the unicameral Israeli parliament supported the initiative, while ten voted against. Opposition parties such as Yesh Atid, the National Unity Party and Yisrael Beiteinu also voted in favor of the proposal, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported.
The vote was preceded by a tense debate in which one of the ruling Likud party’s deputies, Tally Gotliv, tried to attack Arab-Israeli deputy Ahmed Tibi as he stood on stage. The chamber’s caretakers also intervened to prevent the Minister of National Security and leader of the far-right Jewish Power Party, Itamar Ben Gvir, and the leader of the socialist and Arab-Israeli Hadash-Language Party, Aiman Odé , from getting hit. They both yelled at each other during the session.
Israel has justified these laws by claiming that approximately 2,100 UNRWA employees belong to the Islamist organization Hamas, but without providing conclusive evidence.
This Sunday the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Australia, France, Germany, Canada, South Korea and the United Kingdom have given their opinion in a statement “deep concern” to allow these laws to pass and have asked Israel to “fulfill its international obligations,” allowing UNRWA to continue its activities.
Even USAIsrael’s largest military and diplomatic support, is against of the two bills. Early this month, the Joe Biden administration sent a letter to Israeli authorities expressing its rejection of the adoption of these laws, which they say will be a blow to humanitarian aid in Gaza and will deprive Gaza of humanitarian aid. tens of thousands of Palestinians in Jerusalem are deprived of basic social services, such as education.
“The backbone of aid in Gaza”
UNRWA is “the backbone of humanitarian operations in Gaza,” said Jonathan Fowdler, one of the organization’s spokespersons, who emphasized that without the organization’s work, 660,000 Gazan children would lose the only entity able to continue their education .
Outside the devastated enclave, where last year’s Israeli offensive has left more than 42,000 dead, most of them women and children, the education and health services on which thousands of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank depend would be dismantled, limiting the ability to survival is at risk. to reach a diplomatic solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Since October 7, 2023, more than 220 UNRWA workers have been killed by Israel and 190 facilities damaged.
Established by the UN in 1950, UNRWA provides social services to more than five million Palestinian refugees – many descendants of the hundreds of thousands displaced by the establishment of the State of Israel – living in the Gaza Strip, the occupied West Bank, Lebanon and Syria live. and Jordan.
Source: EITB
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
