On Thursday, May 9, 2024, Israeli settlers launched several attacks on the headquarters of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (Unrwa) in East Jerusalem, setting fire to the perimeter of the building.
Philippe Lazzarini, the commissioner general of Unrwa, said that “Israeli residents set fire twice to the perimeter of the UNRWA Headquarters in occupied East Jerusalem”, adding that “This took place while UNRWA and other UN Agencies’ staff were on the compound.”
“While there were no casualties among our staff, the fire caused extensive damage to the outdoor areas,” emphasising that the agency’s “director with the help of other staff had to put out the fire themselves as it took the Israeli fire extinguishers and police a while before they turned up”.
The UN official added that “A crowd accompanied by armed men were witnessed outside the compound chanting “Burn down the United Nations”. He described this as “an outrageous development”, during which the lives of UN staff were at a serious risk.
Lazzarini confirmed that he has taken “the decision to close down our compound until proper security is restored,” and called to “hold all those responsible accountable.”
This is the second attack on the UNRWA headquarters in East Jerusalem in less than two days. On Tuesday, the settlers attacked the UNRWA’s headquarters in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood in East Jerusalem and tried to storm it to demand its closure and all other offices of the agency in the city.
Over the past two months, Israeli settlers organized violent protests outside the UNRWA headquarters in Jerusalem, threw stones at UN staff and the buildings, and called for closing it down.
The Israeli attacks on the UNRWA headquarters came in response to a call from Aryeh King, deputy mayor of the Israeli municipality in West Jerusalem, who urged the protests to continue their violent acts until all UNRWA headquarters in East Jerusalem are closed.
As the Israeli war on Gaza continues for the eighth month, the Israeli occupation has also launched a campaign against UNRWA, to obstruct its work in the Gaza Strip, claiming that it is biased and claiming the “involvement” of its employees in the Palestinian factions’ attack on settlements adjacent to Gaza on October 7, 2023.
On April 22, an investigation conducted by an independent international committee at the request of UN Secretary-General António Guterres, regarding UNRWA’s performance, concluded that “Israel did not provide any evidence” of its allegations regarding the agency’s lack of impartiality, stressing “the importance of its relief role.”
UNRWA was established by a decision of the United Nations General Assembly in 1949 and was mandated to provide assistance and protection to Palestinian refugees in its five areas of work; Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip.
