UNRWA chief: Agency enduring ‘darkest moment’, as Israeli laws threaten operations

This article is published in association with United Nations.

The UN agency for Palestine refugees, UNRWA, is living through the “darkest moment” of its 75 year history, Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said on Wednesday, pointing to a trifecta of legislative, operational and security challenges.

Speaking at a press conference at UN Headquarters in New York, he detailed the implications of the recent laws passed by the Israeli Knesset, which aim to dismantle UNRWA activities across the occupied Palestinian territory, including Gaza and the West Bank.

“The intention is to undermine the agency,” he said, emphasizing that these measures are politically motivated.

Since the onset of the war in Gaza on 7 October 2023, 243 UNRWA staff members have lost their lives. Around 190 buildings and installations have been damaged or destroyed, and lifesaving aid operations severely restricted.

Disinformation campaign

“In addition to that there has been [an] intense and aggressive disinformation campaign, [including] reaching out to donor capitals to delegitimize the agency,” Mr. Lazzarini said.

He reiterated that despite operating in an environment fraught with risk, UNRWA upholds a “zero tolerance” policy toward breaches of neutrality, emphasizing that the agency is a “soft target” for anyone which perceives its presence or activities as a threat.

This includes Hamas, which over many years has accused the agency of “colluding” with Israel, given UNRWA’s programmes on education, gender equality, or arts, culture and sport. At the same time, Israel has accused UNRWA of colluding with and being infiltrated by Hamas.

“So, this morning [at the Fourth Committee of the General Assembly] I also wanted also to clean the record on this,” Mr. Lazzarini said, refuting the allegations and referring to his annual briefing to UN Member States at the General Assembly’s main Special Political and Decolonization Committee.

UN Photo/Mark Garten

Philippe Lazzarini, Commissioner-General of UNRWA, briefs journalists at the UN Headquarters, in New York.

Staff targeted

In addition to legislative and financial hurdles, UNRWA staff have faced intensified security risks, he said, recounting a recent incident involving a female staff member in northern West Bank who was detained, interrogated and forced to provide access to sensitive information after being accused of working for a “terrorist organization.”

Such events, he highlighted, reflects the heightened risks for staff in an increasingly hostile environment.

UNRWA is irreplaceable

UNRWA is irreplaceable he said – a position that has been frequently reiterated by the UN Secretary-General in recent weeks and multiple UN humanitarian agencies on the ground.

The agency had been providing education to hundreds of thousands of girls and boys in the Gaza Strip for decades. He said only  UNRWA could continue with the necessary educational services once a ceasefire is in place.

Likewise, it steers all critical public health services, providing thousands of consultations daily.

If UNRWA ceases to operate, Mr. Lazzarini warned, “the only alternative is that the onus and the responsibility goes back to the occupying power, meaning that Israel will be responsible to provide these critical services.” Commissioner-General Lazzarini speaking to the press.

Prevent UNRWA’s collapse

Mr. Lazzarini reiterated his call on UN Member States to act to prevent the implementation of the newly adopted laws, and to ensure continued financial and political backing for UNRWA.

Alongside, it is vital that the question of UNRWA be addressed within a political framework and that any political pathway leading to the two-State solution should clearly define its continuing role.

In conclusion, he stressed that attacks on UNRWA “are attacks on the United Nations” itself. Israel’s assault defies the General Assembly and the Security Council, and undermines the rule-based international order established after World War Two, he added.

Mr. Lazzarini urged the dozens of countries who support its work to “deploy all political and legal capital to prevent this from happening.”

Our operation continues

Responding to a question from a journalist, Mr. Lazzarini said agency operations will continue in Gaza, “but our operational space is very, very narrow.”

“Gaza is one of the most dangerous places to operate. You have also been regularly briefed on how harrowing the situation is there,” he said, describing the scale of death and destruction, immense humanitarian needs and severe limitations on aid.

Answering another query on how long UNRWA could continue to operate in Gaza, Mr. Lazzarini said that the “simple and short answer is we will be operating until the day we cannot operate anymore”.

“We will deliver the services until we are forced to stop the services,” he said.