UNICEF has protested Israel’s ban on the UN aid agency, stating that the move will lead to an increase in the death toll of children in the besieged Gaza Strip.
The Israeli regime has labeled the UN aid agency in Palestine, UNRWA, a "terrorist outfit."
At a UN press briefing in Geneva, UNICEF global spokesperson James Elder slammed the banning of UNRWA.
“If UNRWA is unable to operate, it’ll likely see the collapse of the humanitarian system in Gaza,” said Elder, who has worked extensively for the protection of Palestinian children in the past year against deadly Israeli attacks.
“So a decision such as this suddenly means that a new way has been found to kill children.”
Other UN agencies followed suit, confirming that it would be impossible to fulfill the assigned humanitarian work in Gaza without UNRWA.
Jonathan Fowler, UNRWA's spokesman in al-Quds, called the agency the backbone of humanitarian work in the Palestinian territories, especially in Gaza.
Fowler, who described the Israeli ban as “an outrage,” told AFP in an interview at the agency's compound in east Al-Quds that "UNRWA is irreplaceable, UNRWA is essential.