Brussels: Europe and the Arabs The European Union expressed its deep concern over the UNRWA bill currently being discussed by the Israeli parliament. According to a European statement issued on Saturday in Brussels, which also stated: “The European Union strongly supports the call of the UN Secretary-General on this issue and shares the concern that this draft law, if adopted, would have serious consequences, preventing the UN agency from continuing to provide its services and protection to Palestinian refugees in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and Gaza.
Final adoption of the draft law would nullify the 1967 agreement between Israel and UNRWA, halt all UNRWA operations in Israel and East Jerusalem, destroy UNRWA’s life-saving operations in Gaza, seriously impede the provision of health, education and social services in the West Bank, and revoke UNRWA’s diplomatic privileges and immunities.

The European Union urges the Israeli authorities to ensure that UNRWA is allowed to continue to carry out its crucial work in line with its mandate adopted by the UN General Assembly. UNRWA provides essential services to millions of people in Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and across the region, including Lebanon, Syria and Jordan, and is a pillar of regional stability. It also plays a key role in ensuring the conditions on the ground for a credible path towards a two-state solution. The EU is a strong supporter of the UN and the rules-based, multilateral global governance system of which UNRWA, as a UN agency, is part. The EU is committed to continuing its support to the Agency, and is closely monitoring the implementation of the recommendations of the Independent Review Group report and further decisive action by the UN to ensure impartiality and accountability and strengthen control and oversight of the Agency’s operations.