JERUSALEM, August 24, 2026 (WAFA) — The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates organized today, Monday, a field visit for the diplomatic corps accredited to the State of Palestine to Qalandiya refugee camp to observe firsthand the crimes and violations committed by the Israeli occupation.
The tour, which included 28 diplomatic missions, featured visits to the Qalandiya Training Center, which the occupation seeks to close and take control of, as well as to Qalandiya Girls' School and the camp. The diplomats viewed several targeted and damaged sites and received briefings on the humanitarian and service conditions and their repercussions on residents and civilian facilities.
Roland Friedrich, Director of UNRWA Affairs in the West Bank, said in a remote address that the vocational training center is part of UNRWA's education program. He added that the agency provides several services to more than 1.1 million registered beneficiaries in the West Bank, including Jerusalem.
He pointed out that the Israeli occupation authorities have closed several UNRWA facilities, including three schools in Shu'fat refugee camp; schools in Silwan, Wadi al-Joz and Sur Baher; two training facilities in Qalandiya refugee camp and inside the city; the Al-Zawiya Clinic located inside Bab al-Sahira; and the agency's headquarters in Sheikh Jarrah, in violation of international law.
He noted that the Qalandiya Training Center gives young refugees hope through regular training activities and educational programs organized at the center, as well as summer and short courses in specific fields. He added that the center's buildings are also made available for use by the local community, where community events are held. The center comprises around eight buildings.
Omar Awadallah, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs for Political Affairs, stated that UNRWA is indispensable, particularly now amid the genocide in Gaza. He added that by targeting UNRWA premises, Israel aims to leave the Palestinian people uneducated, unhealthy, and without a future.
He pointed out that development is impossible under occupation, adding that despite this, UNRWA has sought to support the Palestinian people by providing them with knowledge and essential tools. He noted that the Qalandiya Training Center is a prime example of these tools, and emphasized that UNRWA is not merely a witness to the 1948 Nakba, but rather an agency that has helped the Palestinian people look toward their future.
Awadallah added that the matter concerns more than just UNRWA's UN-granted mandate; rather, there is a direct assault on the United Nations itself. He said that the United Nations is being attacked in Jerusalem, the West Bank, and Gaza because they oppose any role for a multilateral system. He added that they are against international law, and that UNRWA's mandate is an integral part of this international law. He stressed that support for the agency is a defense of international law itself.
He pointed out that the International Court of Justice ruled last year that the international community has an obligation to support UNRWA. He noted that under this ruling, Israel must respect the agency's mandate, privileges, and immunities and refrain from attacking its facilities, as targeting them constitutes an assault on Palestinian refugees.
Abdullah Siam, Deputy Governor of Jerusalem, stated that the tour followed the targeting of the camp and the vocational training center. He noted these actions are part of unjust occupation measures aimed at undermining UNRWA's work. Furthermore, he expressed hope that the tour would help deter the occupation, which he argued now operates outside the framework of international law.
On August 5, Israeli occupation forces raided the camp and imposed a comprehensive two-day siege, leaving dozens injured and detained and causing extensive damage to public and private property.
They also turned several homes into military barracks and detention centers, took control of the headquarters of the Popular Committee and the Jerusalem Governorate Office inside the camp, closed the camp’s entrances and main roads, demolished seven commercial shops around the Qalandiya military checkpoint, demolished a car-washing facility, bulldozed the courtyard of a home, destroyed the contents of dozens of homes during search operations, and bulldozed the facades of several commercial shops inside the camp.
Qalandiya refugee camp holds strategic importance in Israeli plans due to its location at the northern gateway to the Jerusalem Governorate, an area witnessing the implementation of a series of major colonization projects aimed at reshaping the city’s geographic and demographic landscape.
These projects include a plan to establish the “Atarot” colony on the lands of Qalandiya town, which aims to construct between 7,000 and 9,000 colonial units; a colonial heritage center, for which the Israeli government laid the foundation stone at the former Jerusalem International Airport building; a military court; a waste treatment facility; and the colonial Route 45 project, which connects northern Jerusalem to areas deep inside the lands of 1948 and runs alongside Qalandiya refugee camp.
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