Israel announces cancellation of agreement with UNRWA

Israel announced Monday the cancellation of the agreement, reached in 1967, with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) because of the organization's links to terrorism, including the Oct. 7 massacre.

The decision was made by Jerusalem after the Knesset (the Israeli parliament) approved a law to ban UNRWA activities in Israel.

Israel Katz, the Jewish state's foreign minister, spoke about the decision on X. "Today I notified the U.N. of the cancellation of the agreement between Israel and UNRWA, in accordance with the Knesset legislation," he said.

"Despite the fact that countless evidence was handed over to the U.N. indicating that UNRWA workers participated in the Oct. 7 massacre and that many of them are Hamas terrorists, the U.N. ignored it and did nothing," the minister added.

Katz also pointed out that "today there are already substitutes for UNRWA. There are other international aid agencies that are not contaminated by terrorist activity."

"The State of Israel is committed to international law and will continue to respect it, while ensuring the safety of its citizens," the Israeli official concluded.

The legislation will take effect in approximately three months. Israeli news site Ynet reported that during this time, cooperation with other international organizations will be expanded, and preparations will be made for the total cancellation of the link with UNRWA, establishing alternatives to the agency, all in compliance with international law.

The purpose of the bill passed by the Knesset

The legislation passed last week by the Knesset, by an overwhelming majority of 92 votes in favor and only 10 against, states that UNRWA will not be able to operate any representation, provide any services or carry out any activities, directly or indirectly, in the sovereign territory of the State of Israel.

This will halt the agency's operations in East Jerusalem, a territory that the Palestinians claim as the capital for a future state, and the functions performed by UNRWA in the area will fall under the responsibility of the Israeli authorities.

As mentioned, the motivation behind this law lies in the fact that a large number of UNRWA employees are involved with Palestinian terrorist organizations such as Hamas and Islamic Jihad, and some of them participated in the Oct. 7 massacre, which is why nine workers were fired from the agency last August.

In July of this year, Israel handed over a list of 100 Hamas members working at UNRWA to the U.N., but the agency took no action against them.

Recently, it was revealed that Muhammad Al-Atawi, an UNRWA employee working at the agency, participated in the massacre. The terrorist was eliminated in an IDF operation, and U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres expressed regret over the death.

In addition, a large number of terrorist operations were carried out from UNRWA facilities, but the agency never notified Israel about them.

The UN's response

Following the passage of the law in the Knesset, Philippe Lazzarini, the UNRWA's secretary-general, said on X that the measure represents a "dangerous precedent." He added that it was a campaign to discredit the agency.

António Guterres sent a letter to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, warning that the consequences of the move could be "devastating."