Gaza ‘ceasefire at risk’ if UNRWA forced to stop operations

UK, France and Germany reiterate ‘grave concern’ implicit Israeli instrumentality forbidding interaction betwixt its officials and UN agency.

Israel’s forcible shutdown of the UN’s humanitarian work successful the Palestinian territory would enactment the ongoing ceasefire betwixt Israel and Hamas astatine risk, the UN Palestinian alleviation bureau (UNRWA) astatine the caput of the prohibition has warned.

UNRWA has for much than 7 decades provided indispensable assistance and assistance to Palestinian refugees.

UNRWA main Philippe Lazzarini has described the organisation arsenic “a lifeline” for astir six cardinal Palestinian refugees nether its complaint successful Gaza and the occupied West Bank.

Israel had accused UNRWA of providing screen for Hamas, an allegation that the bureau powerfully denied. It besides accused UNRWA unit members of being portion of the October 7 attack. Israel has not provided grounds for its claims and accusations.

Subsequently, it passed authorities severing ties with the agency, which came into unit connected Thursday, a determination apt to hamper its captious services aft 15 months of warfare successful Gaza.

The bureau is banned from operating connected Israeli ungraded and interaction betwixt it and Israeli officials is besides forbidden.

“If UNRWA is not allowed to proceed to bring and administer supplies, past the destiny of this precise fragile ceasefire is going to beryllium astatine hazard and is going to beryllium successful jeopardy,” Juliette Touma, manager of communications of UNRWA, told a Geneva property briefing connected Friday.

UNRWA issued the informing arsenic the United Kingdom, France and Germany reiterated their “grave concern” implicit Israel’s ban.

“We impulse the authorities of Israel to enactment with planetary partners, including the UN, to guarantee continuity of operations,” the associated connection from the 3 nations, published by the British government, said.

In a statement, UNRWA spokesperson Jonathan Fowler admitted that the organisation is present operating successful a “nightmare scenario”.

Fowler said UNRWA has 5,000 unit inactive moving successful Gaza arsenic the “backbone of the planetary assistance operation” and their enactment whitethorn beryllium compromised by the situation.

“Our biggest fearfulness is that determination is nary program B,” helium said.

Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for UN main Antonio Guterres, earlier insisted that contempt the ban, “UNRWA clinics crossed the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, are open.”

Al Jazeera’s Gabriel Elizondo, reporting from the UN office successful New York, said portion UNRWA’s enactment continues, Israel has not renewed visas for astatine slightest a twelve of the agency’s workers.

After the instrumentality came into effect, Norway announced it would lend $24m to the agency.

“Gaza is successful ruins, and UNRWA’s assistance is much indispensable than ever,” Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide said.

Turkiye condemned the Israeli determination arsenic “a blatant usurpation of planetary law” and said it “marks a caller signifier successful Israel’s policies of concern and annexation aimed astatine forcibly displacing Palestinians from their ain land”.

On Wednesday, Israel’s Supreme Court rejected a petition by Palestinian quality rights radical Adalah contesting the ban, but noted the authorities lone forbade UNRWA operations connected “the sovereign territory of the State of Israel”, not successful Gaza and the West Bank that it has occupied.

The prohibition does apply, however, to Israeli-annexed East Jerusalem, wherever UNRWA has tract office for its operations successful the West Bank.

In response, Adalah said the instrumentality would travel into effect “disregarding the catastrophic humanitarian consequences”.

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Al Jazeera and quality agencies