Delegitimise, defund, destroy: Israel's long-waged war against UNRWA

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) – the UN body that has been providing life - saving aid to millions of Palestinians for more than seven decades – is facing an existential crisis amid Israel’s brutal war on Gaza.

Several countries have cut funding to the agency following Israeli allegations that 12 of its staff were involved in the Hamas’s cross-border attack on October 7.

Subsequently, nine Western countries led by the US suspended funding to UNRWA, a critical provider of services for 5.9 million Palestinian refugees in the occupied West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza, besides Jordan, Lebanon and Syria – the neighbouring countries where the Palestinian refugees took shelter after their violent expulsion known as the Nakba or catastrophe.

The UN swiftly responded on Saturday, terminating nine of the accused staff and pledging accountability while expressing shock at the abrupt funding cuts amid a dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, which has been grappling with the aftermath of nearly four months of Israel’s intense aerial and ground war.

This funding crisis, however, is not an isolated incident but part of a broader and longstanding opposition by Israel against UNRWA.

UNRWA toll

In the ongoing bombing of Gaza, at least 152 UNRWA staff have been killed in Israeli airstrikes targeted at the agency's 180 facilities in Gaza. This grim toll stands as the highest number of UN personnel casualties in any conflict, as noted by Guterres.

The Israeli assault on UNRWA facilities persists. Just last Wednesday, two Israeli tank shells hit a building sheltering 800 people in Khan Younis, as reported by the UNRWA. The strikes killed at least 12 people, including four children, and wounded 75 others, the head of UNRWA wrote on X.

The aggression by the Israeli army has its roots in the explicit endorsements from Israeli politicians.

High-ranking officials have openly expressed their desire to dismantle UNRWA and halt its vital services for millions of Palestinian refugees.

In a significant example from January, Noga Arbel, a former Israeli official and current head of the right-wing Kohelet Foundation, addressed the Knesset.

Arbel asserted that UNRWA posed the primary threat to Israel, proclaiming, "It will be impossible to win this war if we do not destroy UNRWA." She framed the ongoing conflict as an "opportunity" for Israel to send UNRWA “to hell”, preventing it from "allowing terrorists to be born" by providing services to Palestinian refugees.

Furthermore, extending their position, far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich asserted on Saturday that Israel, not UNRWA, will oversee the distribution of aid in post-war Gaza. This statement underscores Israel's view that the destruction of UNRWA is pivotal to its ongoing war on the Palestinian enclave.

In addition to official statements, Israel has taken measures against UN officials who criticise the country. It declared its decision not to renew the visa of UN Humanitarian Coordinator Lynn Hastings and announced the denial of visa applications for other UN officials who have criticised Israel's unprecedented targeting of Gaza's civilians and civilian infrastructure.

These recent instances highlight Israel's efforts to undermine the crucial services provided by UNRWA during its recent attacks on Gaza over the past three months. Nevertheless, they signify the latest phase in an enduring endeavour to marginalise UNRWA’s role in addressing the Palestinian refugee issue.

Years-long targeting of UNRWA

Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz, in a post on X, called for an end to UNRWA's involvement in Gaza, stating, "We have been warning for years: UNRWA perpetuates the refugee issue, obstructs peace, and serves as a civilian arm of Hamas in Gaza."

For Israel, the perpetuation of the Palestinian refugee question by UNRWA casts a long shadow on the state's existence, rooted in the dispossession and expulsion of more than 750,000 Palestinians during the Nakba.

According to the UNRWA's website, the right of return for refugees is enshrined in UN General Assembly Resolution 194, and UNRWA was established to provide assistance and protection to Palestinian refugees pending the implementation of that resolution, consistently reaffirmed by the General Assembly since 1948.

For many Israelis, just as their foreign minister said, this UN agency perpetuates the Palestinian refugee question by providing vital services, keeping them within and around Palestine until they exercise their right of return. Some view this situation as posing an existential threat to the existence of Israel.

That’s why Israel persistently lobbied for years to defund UNRWA, garnering support, notably from the US.

This push became explicit in 2017 when Israeli prime minister Netanyahu conveyed to then-US Ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley, the necessity of dismantling UNRWA and merging it with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

Unlike UNRWA, which addresses historical rights and the right of return, the UNHCR primarily focuses on humanitarian aid and logistical support, lacking mechanisms for reparations or repatriation. A merger could potentially strip Palestinians of access to their historical rights.

In 2018, Netanyahu's long-term efforts began to yield results when then-US President Trump announced the cessation of US funding for UNRWA, breaking with the policy upheld by every former American president over the agency's 70-year history.

The Biden Administration reversed Trump's decision in 2020, not necessarily to uphold the Palestinian right of return but to prevent regional upheaval and instability.