NEW YORK, January 29, 2025 (WAFA) -  UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called on the Israeli government to withdraw its decision requiring UNRWA to cease providing services in Jerusalem and vacate all buildings it operates in the city by January 30.

In a letter, Guterres called on Israel to withdraw this decision based on the legal framework regulating UNRWA’s activities and its irreplaceable nature, referring to Israel’s obligations towards the agency under an agreement concluded between Israel and the United Nations in 1967, and under the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations, which applies to UNRWA.

He stressed that international law stipulates that Israel has no right to impose its sovereignty over the occupied Palestinian territories and that “Israel cannot invoke the provisions of its national law,” including the law passed to ban UNRWA, “to justify its failure to fulfill its obligations under international law.”

Guterres referred to the General Assembly resolutions that granted UNRWA a mandate to operate in its areas of operation, including Jerusalem, stressing that under international law, an "occupying power" must establish mechanisms to assist civilians in the territories it occupies.

He explained that any measures that prevent UNRWA from continuing its activities will severely undermine the provision of an appropriate humanitarian response in the occupied Palestinian territory, noting the General Assembly's confirmation in its resolution issued at its tenth emergency special session on January 11, 2024, that no organization can replace or replace UNRWA's capacity and mandate to provide the required services and assistance.

K.T