Germany ‘sharply’ criticizes Israeli bill to ban UN Palestinian refugee agency

The German government on Monday said it “sharply” criticized a bill passed by Israel’s parliament to ban the UN agency for Palestinian refugees from working in Israel and occupied east Jerusalem.

Germany’s Commissioner for Human Rights Policy and Humanitarian Assistance, Luise Amtsberg, also warned the move would “effectively make UNRWA’s work in Gaza, the West Bank and east Jerusalem impossible… jeopardising vital humanitarian aid for millions of people”.

The vote in Israel’s parliament followed years of harsh Israeli criticism of UNRWA, which has only increased since the start of the war in Gaza following Hamas’s deadly October 7 attacks last year.

Amtsberg said the implementation of the law as it currently stands “would be a fateful step” and that “our efforts to bring peace to the Middle East would be hindered”.

“The Israeli action against a UN-mandated organization that has been doing vital work since 1950 is a dangerous signal of disrespect for the United Nations and for international cooperation,” she said.

In January, Israel accused a dozen of UNRWA’s Gaza employees of involvement in the October 7 attack by Hamas, which sparked the deadliest war in the Palestinian territory.

A series of probes found some “neutrality related issues” at UNRWA, and determined that nine employees “may have been involved” in the October 7 attack, but found no evidence for Israel’s main allegations.

Amtsberg acknowledged that “UNRWA has taken measures to address allegations of support for terrorist organisations by individual staff members and to reform internal procedures”.

She said the UN agency “must continue to implement these reforms as a high priority and further strengthen its neutrality”.