DaysofPal- The United Nations has issued a strong rebuke of the Israeli occupation after its forces stormed the headquarters of the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) for Palestinian refugees in the Sheikh Jarrah area of occupied al-Quds.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres condemned the raid as an unlawful breach, stressing that the compound is UN property and safeguarded under international law.
“I strongly condemn today’s unauthorized entry into the UN Sheikh Jarrah compound,” Guterres said, noting that such premises are protected from interference under UN privileges and immunities.
UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric repeated the demand that the Israeli occupation honor the protected status of UNRWA sites and refrain from further violations.
UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini described the incident as a blatant attack on international legal norms.
He reported that Israeli police, together with local officials, forced their way into the compound, confiscated furniture and IT equipment, cut communication lines, and replaced the UN flag with an Israeli one.
Lazzarini added that the raid came after months of mounting pressure on UNRWA, ranging from arson attacks and harassment to a broad disinformation campaign, fueled further by new anti-UNRWA legislation passed by the Israeli Knesset.
According to the al-Quds Governorate, Israeli forces also detained the compound’s security guards and took their phones. The premises, which UNRWA has used since 1951, had been emptied earlier in the year following an Israeli order.
The incursion happened just 48 hours after the UN General Assembly overwhelmingly renewed UNRWA’s mandate for another three years, with 151 countries supporting the decision.
The Israeli occupation has prohibited the agency from operating in the occupied territories, alleging that some employees took part in the al-Aqsa Storm operation of October 2023. UNRWA has repeatedly asked the
Israeli occupation to provide proof, but no evidence has been delivered.
The agency continues to struggle financially amid an intensified Israeli campaign aimed at discrediting and defunding it.
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