Ramallah – Ma’an – The Department of Refugee Affairs of the Palestine Liberation Organization held a specialized session on the legal implications of the Israeli bills in the Knesset that consider UNRWA a terrorist organization. The session was attended by a wide group of legal experts, specialists, and representatives of institutions working in the field of human rights in Palestine, with the participation of representatives of some legal units in the departments of the Palestine Liberation Organization.
The session was opened by Dr. Ahmed Abu Holi, Head of the Refugee Affairs Department and member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, who stressed the need for collective work with all experts, specialists, institutions, and national and popular activities to accurately read all the attacks that UNRWA is exposed to, especially the draft laws against UNRWA that are currently being approved by the Israeli Knesset, and which were submitted by members of the extremist Zionist part
ies. Abu Holi stressed that the three draft laws seek to systematically undermine the messages exchanged between Israel and UNRWA, known as the Comay-Michelmore Agreement, and are part of the Israeli plan to eliminate UNRWA through three stages (attaching the label of terrorism to UNRWA, weakening its work and professional, humanitarian and service interventions, replacement and termination). Dr. Abu Holi called on all legal experts to deepen research into these escalating Israeli steps that target UNRWA and the refugee issue as a whole, stressing at the same time that these laws are invalid and contradict international law.
The participants in the specialized consultative session expressed a wide range of observations, recommendations and proposals aimed at preserving UNRWA, and considering any Israeli legislation against UNRWA as discriminatory and terrorist legislation and therefore as unemployment legislation from the perspective of international law, and that it is not permissible under any circumstance
s to use any such legislation as a pretext to evade international law and international commitments.
The participants also stressed that what Israel is doing today against UNRWA is a dangerous precedent against the United Nations and its agencies, and represents disdain for the international community and the General Assembly that established UNRWA. This requires a decisive and clear position by strengthening support for UNRWA politically, legally and financially.
The attendees stressed the need to find a Palestinian strategy in this area, based on the foundations of defending rights, legal foundations, especially Resolution 194, Partition Resolution 181, and UNRWA establishment Resolution 302, in addition to strengthening the protection frameworks for UNRWA on the one hand and for Palestinian refugees on the other, through a serious revival of the International Conciliation Commission.
The participants called on the international community to stand seriously and firmly by rejecting draft laws targeting UN
RWA, rejecting any legal consequences that may hinder UNRWA’s work, and exposing the Israeli plans that target the definition of the Palestinian refugee as an entry point to target the rights of refugees, most notably the right to return, reclaim property and compensation. Accordingly, the international community must continue to support UNRWA and recognize it as part of the international commitment, stand firmly against any measures targeting UNRWA, and reject any attempts to circumvent UNRWA’s work by proposing ideas such as partnerships on behalf of UNRWA.
The participants discussed the importance of working simultaneously on several tracks to protect UNRWA in light of this existential targeting, especially the legal, media, popular and international tracks, addressing the world and solidarity movements with the Palestinian people, and shedding light on the targeting of UNRWA headquarters, employees and displaced persons inside these headquarters, and considering this part of the war of genocide and starv
ation practiced by Israel.
Source: Maan News Agency