Al-Azhar condemns Israel's disruptions to UNRWA activities amid Gaza catastrophe

Ahram Online , Tuesday 29 Oct 2024

Egypt's Al-Azhar Observatory for Combating Extremism has condemned Israel's deliberate disruptions to the operations of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in the occupied Palestinian territories.

Al-Azhar

 

The Israeli approach comes amid catastrophic conditions ravaging the Palestinian population in Gaza, torn apart by over a year of relentless war waged by the oppressive Zionist forces against civilians, the Al-Azhar observatory said in a statement on Tuesday.

On Monday, the Israeli Knesset approved a bill banning the UNRWA from working in Israel, following years of harsh Israeli criticism of UNRWA, intensifying since the start of the Israeli war on Gaza in October 2023.

The observatory described the Knesset's recent decision as part of the Generals' Plan aimed at displacing Palestinians from northern Gaza, militarizing the region, and ultimately resuming settlement construction.

"Such actions constitute a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law and universally accepted legal principles that continue to be ignored—time and again—without serious intervention to halt the occupation’s brutality, which has exceeded all reasonable bounds," the statement read.

Al-Azhar observatory also underlined the historical context of Israel's formation.

"This is hardly surprising from an entity founded by militias brought from Europe, which committed atrocities akin to those we witness today in Gaza and the rest of steadfast Palestine including the Haganah, led by David Ben-Gurion, who later became Israel’s first Prime Minister.”

It added that groups like the Haganah, along with Irgun and Stern militias, implemented systematic ethnic cleansing, forcibly displacing Palestinians from their towns and villages by spilling their blood, slaughtering children, and levelling villages during the early 20th century.

“Despite the carnage, Haganah and its leader Ben-Gurion became iconic symbols of the nascent state, and the ranks of the Israeli military were built upon the foundations laid by these early militant groups, whose descendants continue today to spill Palestinian blood with weapons and bombs supplied by nations that tout daily the values of democracy and freedom,” It continued.

The observatory pointed out that UNRWA has displayed a black ribbon on its emblem for months to mourn its fallen employees.

It added that this symbol should extend further to represent the mourning of international law and the world’s conscience, which seems selective in its compassion by aiding some while ignoring grave injustices against others.

"This double standard indicates the beginning of the end for a global system that speaks in terms of the law of force rather than the force of law, with Israel trampling on what remains of the international community and its institutions, including the United Nations," it continued.

Al-Azhar’s Observatory posed a question to the international community and Israel’s supporters to conclude its statement: Does Israel have the right to ban UNRWA activities in Palestine?

In an earlier statement issued by the Egyptian Foreign Ministry today, Egypt condemned the Israeli Knesset’s approval of the bill banning the operations of the UNRWA and restricting its ability to provide support to Palestinian citizens in the occupied Palestinian territories.

The recent Israeli move is part of its campaign against the UN agency, which lost more than 200 of its staff since the outbreak of the Israeli war on Gaza.

Two-thirds of its facilities have also been damaged or destroyed.

Earlier this month, Israel announced plans to confiscate the UNRWA headquarters in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood of East Jerusalem to build illegal settlement units on its site, according to media reports.

UNRWA, operating across several countries, was established in 1949 to assist Palestinian refugees displaced during the Nakba, following Israel’s creation in 1948.

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