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UN says UNRWA will deliver mandate as long as possible after Israeli deadline for East Jerusalem premises
Summary
With an Israeli deadline for UNRWA premises in East Jerusalem set for the following day, the UN spokesperson said UNRWA would continue to deliver services as long as it is physically able; the UN said investigations into allegations involving UNRWA have been handled by OIOS.
The United Nations said UNRWA (the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees) would continue delivering its mandate in East Jerusalem “for as long as it can,” following an Israeli deadline to vacate premises there.
During a press briefing, UN Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric reiterated that the secretary-general had requested Israel to retract the order and said measures had been taken to protect UN staff, premises and records. When asked whether UN staff were expected to report for work, Dujarric said “we have taken some measures” and reiterated that UNRWA would continue to deliver services until it was physically unable to do so.
Dujarric said the UN had engaged with Israeli authorities — including the foreign ministry and other actors — to obtain clarity on how recently passed Israeli legislation would be implemented, but that the UN had not received consistent information. He said the UN and UNRWA were open to negotiations and that any allegations received had been investigated; he said investigations into allegations involving UNRWA had been handled by the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS).
On protections, Dujarric said staff, both national and international, “will need to be protected according to international law and according to Israel’s obligations under international law,” and he said he could not confirm that the UN had received assurances from Israeli authorities. He declined to provide detailed operational steps from the podium, saying specific protective measures were being implemented but not described publicly.
