Following the Israeli parliament’s decision to ban the main UN agency helping Palestinians in the Middle East, UNRWA, from operating in Israel, its head Philippe Lazzarini has asked the United Nations General Assembly for help.
“For the past year, UNRWA has been a lifeline for the people of Gaza.
It is the only pillar of their lives left standing,” Lazzarini told the assembly in New York.
He asked the UN member states to work against the implementation of the Israeli legislation banning the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), to maintain the financial support of the aid organization and to include and define its role in any plan for the future of the region.
The ban, which is to come into force after a three-month period, has attracted a great deal of international criticism.
Israel alleges that some of UNRWA’s employees were involved in the attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023.
Lazzarini said that accusations of “violations of neutrality” within UNRWA are taken very seriously. However, despite multiple requests, Israel has not provided any evidence to support its accusations, he added. (DPA)
