Arab League calls for UN resolution against Israel's UNRWA ban

By Ibrahim Khazen

CAIRO (AA) – The Arab League called Thursday for the passage of a UN resolution opposing Israel's move to ban the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) from operating in the country.

The initiative came during an extraordinary session of the Arab League Council at the level of permanent representatives in Cairo following a request by Jordan to discuss the Arab response to a recent decision by the Israeli Knesset, or parliament, to ban UNRWA’s operations in Israel.

The meeting demanded in its decision that "the representatives of Arab countries in New York coordinate with the ambassadors and representatives of friendly countries and the UN Secretariat to request a special session of the UN General Assembly, as it is the body that issued the decision to establish UNRWA, to discuss the repercussions of this serious Israeli law and to issue a UN resolution rejecting this illegal Israeli measure.”

It also called on "the Arab Parliament, the parliaments of Arab countries, and the Inter-Parliamentary Union to act by pressuring the Israeli Knesset to repeal the decision to halt UNRWA’s operations, considering that this decision constitutes a clear and direct violation of international norms and agreements, and to study steps to suspend the Knesset's membership in the Inter-Parliamentary Union."

The league emphasized in its decision the necessity of "continuing to provide the necessary political and financial support to UNRWA so that it can continue to fulfill its role according to its UN mandate in its five areas of operations," which are Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

On Tuesday, Jordan formally asked the pan-Arab bloc to hold an emergency meeting to discuss a collective response to the Knesset's legislation.

The Knesset passed a bill Monday banning UNRWA from operating in Israel, which would eventually affect its work in Gaza, the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem. The legislation will take effect in 90 days.

UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini called the Israeli ban “unprecedented and dangerous” and in violation of the UN Charter.

Israel has accused UNRWA employees of complicity in the Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel by the Palestinian group Hamas, alleging that the agency’s educational programs “promote terrorism and hatred.”

UNRWA, headquartered in East Jerusalem’s Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, denies the accusations and asserts that it remains neutral, solely focusing on supporting refugees.

The agency, founded by a 1949 UN General Assembly resolution, provides aid and protection to Palestinian refugees in Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, the West Bank and Gaza.

The Israeli army has continued a devastating offensive on the Gaza Strip since the Hamas attack last October, despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire.

More than 43,160 people have since been killed, mostly women and children, and over 101,500 others injured, according to local health authorities.

The Israeli onslaught has displaced almost the entire population of the territory amid an ongoing blockade that has led to severe shortages of food, clean water and medicine.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its brutal war on Gaza.

*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala