The aid organization UNRWA had to close its headquarters in Jerusalem.
of the UN The premises of UNRWA, an aid organization for Palestinian refugees, in Jerusalem were set on fire on Thursday evening, says the head of the organization Philippe Lazzarini message service in X.
“Israeli residents twice set fire to the outskirts of the UNRWA headquarters in occupied East Jerusalem. This happened while the staff of UNRWA and other UN organizations were still in the area,” he writes.
“Once again the lives of UN staff were in serious danger.”
None of the organization’s employees were injured in the situation, but the organization has had to close its headquarters for the time being due to the security risk.
Lazzarin’s according to the act, Israeli extremists and a politician elected in local elections were behind the act. Demonstrations have been organized outside the UNRWA premises in Jerusalem throughout the spring and earlier this week protesters had thrown stones at the headquarters.
In the video of the situation, a group can be heard repeating slogans. According to Lazzarin, these shout, among other things, “burn the UN.”
“During the past two months, UN staff have been regularly harassed and threatened. Our facilities have been vandalized and badly damaged. Israeli extremists have often threatened our employees with weapons,” Lazzarini writes.
“It is Israel’s duty as the occupying power to guarantee the continued security of UN employees and facilities.”
The organization’s employees had to put out the fire that broke out in the premises themselves. The area’s outdoor facilities were badly damaged in the fire.
Palestinian Authority condemned the attack and called on the international community to take a tough line against Israeli armed groups, reports news agency Reuters.
Jordan called for measures that would “force Israel to accept its responsibility as an occupying state in Jerusalem.” Saudi Arabia also condemned the attack.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Qatar, Israel has systematically targeted UNRWA. In January, Israel accused a dozen of the 13,000 employees of the organization that coordinates aid to Gaza of collaborating with the extremist organization Hamas. As a result, many countries, including Finland, stopped supporting UNRWA.
Israel has not provided evidence for its claims. Finland has since returned support to UNRWA.
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