Israel bulldozes UNRWA buildings in occupied East Jerusalem

As the far-right government severely restricts humanitarian organizations that provide desperately needed aid to Palestinians in Gaza, Israel has begun razing the UN agency’s (UNRWA) headquarters in occupied East Jerusalem.

UNRWA claimed in a statement released on Tuesday that Israeli forces had seize employee computers and forced them to leave their Sheikh Jarrah headquarters.

“UNRWA and its premises are the targets of an unprecedented attack,” the statement reads. It “violates gravely international law and the rights and privileges of the United Nations,” it said.

According to local media reports, an Israeli army group reportedly stormed the agency’s compound after blocking the neighborhood’s streets and putting its military presence there, before going on to destroy the building’s interior, according to the Palestinian news agency Wafa.

UNRWA director Philippe Lazzarini claimed the attack was “in response to other steps taken by Israeli authorities to erase the Palestine Refugee identity.” Additionally, Israeli lawmakers and members of the government were present.

He also cautioned that “any other international organization or diplomatic mission” will be affected by what transpires today in the world.

UNRWA has been repeatedly attacked by Israel for having pro-Palestinian biases and accusing the organization of having ties to Hamas, which the UN agency has vehemently denied.

According to Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the demolition was in compliance with a recent law that outlawed the organization.

Itamar Ben-Gvir, the head of national security, claimed in a statement that he had taken the workers there on a “historic day” and that he had accompanied them there.

After dozens of international aid organizations’ efforts to aid Palestinians in the Gaza Strip’s devastated region were banned, Israel faced international condemnation.

For breaking new government regulations, Israel has suspended the operating licenses of&nbsp, 37 aid organizations, including Doctors Without Borders, known by its French names, MSF, and the Norwegian Refugee Council.

International NGOs operating in Gaza and the occupied West Bank are required to provide detailed information about their funding and operations in accordance with the new regulations.

According to Al Jazeera’s Nida Ibrahim, who is based in Ramallah and is in the occupied West Bank, the escalation came as a result of Israeli forces’ “monstrations against Palestinians in Gaza” and a ban on organizations from “offering assistance to Palestinians in there.”

She added that the anniversary of a significant Israeli attack on three Palestinian refugee camps is approaching and that an “intense” operation is being conducted in Hebron.

According to Ibrahim, “Israeli forces have started destroying homes and roads in an effort to change the meaning of these camps, what they resemble, and what they represent, which is the Palestinian identity and the Palestinian right to return to the homes they were displaced from,” many people have said.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week that if UNRWA’s laws are repealed and its seized assets and property are returned, he could bring his country before the International Court of Justice.

Guterres wrote to Netanyahu on January 8 that the UN cannot continue to ignore “actions taken by Israel that are in direct violation of international law.” They must be immediately reversed.

UNRWA’s operations in Israel were prohibited by the Israeli parliament’s law in October 2024, which also outlawed contacts between Israeli officials and the organization. Last month, it amended the law to forbid the supply of water or electricity to UNRWA facilities.

Last month, Israeli authorities seized UNRWA’s offices in East Jerusalem. Israel considers Jerusalem to be a part of the nation, whereas the UN views Jerusalem as being occupied by Israel.