Russia condemns Israel’s UNRWA ban

MOSCOW

Russia on Saturday condemned Israel’s decision to ban the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) from operating in the occupied territories.

Last October, the Israeli parliament passed two laws that called for ending UNRWA’s operations in Israel and occupied Palestinian territories, and prohibiting Israeli authorities from having any contact with the agency. The laws came into effect on Thursday.

The Foreign Ministry said UNRWA should be allowed to continue its work until a final peaceful settlement of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

Praising the agency’s role, the ministry described it as a "pillar of support for peaceful Palestinians in the occupied territory and neighboring countries, as well as a guarantee of the fundamental right of refugees to return."

Moscow reiterated that peace in the Middle East must be based on the establishment of an independent Palestinian state within the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital, coexisting with Israel in security.

The ministry also questioned Israel’s claim to “sovereign territory” in its decree banning UNRWA’s operations in occupied East Jerusalem, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip.

"This means that hundreds of thousands of children, women, and the elderly are at risk of being abandoned to their fate," it said.

Russia accused Israel of violating international law, including UN resolutions, stressing that an occupying power "cannot extend its sovereignty to the occupied territory."

"Such arbitrary steps, fraught with the gravest humanitarian consequences for the Palestinians, are deeply disappointing and deserve to be condemned.

"It should also be noted that as a result of the Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, 273 UNRWA staff members were killed, which was the largest onetime loss to the UN since its creation almost 80 years ago," the ministry stressed.