The UN relief agency for Palestinians has slammed the Israeli decision to ban UNRWA in the occupied Palestinian territories as an effort to erase Palestinian history and identity.
In a post on his X account, Phillippe Lazzarini said UNRWA had provided food, shelter, school and health care for hundreds of thousands of Palestinian Refugees in Gaza and the occupied West Bank. The UNRWA chief described the agency and its activities unique and irreplaceable in this regard. Lazzarini then called for the establishment of a functioning Palestinian state that would address the plight of its Refugees in the absence of the UN agency. The remark comes as UNRWA is preparing to shut down its offices in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, due to an Israeli legislation banning its activities there.The ban is set to come into effect at the end of January.