Israel bans UNRWA, humanitarian process may collapse

Israel passed a law on Monday banning the UN Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA from operating in the country, legislation that could impact its work in war-torn Gaza.

The lawmakers who drafted the law cited the involvement of some UNRWA staffers in the October 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel and for staffers having membership in Hamas and other armed groups.

The media adviser to the UN relief agency UNRWA, Adnan Abu Hasna, said on Monday that Israel’s decision to ban the organisation’s operation inside the country will mean the collapse of the humanitarian process as a whole.

Hasna described the decision as an “unprecedented” escalation while speaking to Qatar’s Al Jazeera Mubasher TV.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said UNRWA workers must be held accountable for what he called their “terrorist activities” against the country.

In a post on X, Netanyahu also said sustained humanitarian aid must remain available in Gaza “now and in the future”.