UNRWA chief warns of devastating impact of Israeli ban on agency

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Updated 29 January 2025
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UNRWA chief warns of devastating impact of Israeli ban on agency

An overall view shows the United Nations Security Council during a meeting concerning UNRWA at UN headquarters.
  • Philippe Lazzarini: ‘To curtail our operations now would sabotage the fragile ceasefire (in Gaza) and deepen the suffering of millions of Palestinians’
  • US ambassador: Washington fully supports ‘Israel’s sovereign decision’

NEW YORK: The commissioner general of the UN Relief and Works Agency issued a stark warning before the UN Security Council on Tuesday, calling on international leaders to intervene in the face of a new Israeli law that is set to cripple the agency’s operations in the Occupied Territories.
Philippe Lazzarini’s warning comes just days after a long-awaited ceasefire took hold in Gaza, offering hope for the millions of Palestinians whose lives have been shattered by almost a year and a half of conflict.
While the ceasefire has brought about the return of hostages and improved humanitarian aid flow, he emphasized that the fragile peace could be jeopardized by legislation passed by the Israeli Knesset that will severely restrict UNRWA’s ability to deliver essential services.
The Israeli law, set to take effect in two days, mandates the cessation of UNRWA’s operations in East Jerusalem and parts of the West Bank, threatening to leave Palestinian refugees without health care, education and emergency relief at a critical time.
UNRWA, which employs 13,000 staff across Gaza and operates 300 premises, has been a cornerstone of life for many Palestinians, providing essential services that many say no other entity can match.
“UNRWA is the largest UN presence in Gaza,” Lazzarini told the UNSC. “Our capacity to provide health care and education, particularly after the devastating losses in Gaza, is irreplaceable.
“To curtail our operations now would sabotage the fragile ceasefire and deepen the suffering of millions of Palestinians.”
Lazzarini’s warning was underscored by alarming statistics: A peer-reviewed study suggests that the death toll in Gaza, reported at 46,000 by the enclave’s Health Ministry, is likely an undercount by more than 40 percent. Most of the victims are women, children and the elderly.
Thousands of survivors are returning to their homes in the decimated north of Gaza, only to find their lives reduced to rubble and their families torn apart, he said.
Since the outbreak of hostilities in October 2023, UNRWA has been a lifeline for Gaza’s population, he added.
The agency has delivered two-thirds of all food assistance, provided shelter to over 1 million displaced individuals, and vaccinated 250,000 children against polio.
Since the ceasefire, UNRWA has accounted for 60 percent of all food entering Gaza, reaching over half a million people daily.
Lazzarini stressed that if the legislation is fully implemented, it would not only destabilize Gaza’s humanitarian situation but also set a dangerous precedent for international law, undermining the credibility of the UN and further eroding trust in the international community.
He pointed out that such actions defy UN resolutions and international legal rulings, including those by the International Court of Justice.
The Israeli government has argued that other entities could replace UNRWA’s services, but Lazzarini rejected this claim, stressing that only the agency has the infrastructure and expertise to deliver the critical services needed by millions of Palestinians.
He also criticized a growing disinformation campaign against UNRWA, funded by the Israeli Foreign Ministry, which has attempted to portray the agency as complicit in terrorism.
“These political attacks aim to strip Palestinians of their refugee status and erase their history and identity,” Lazzarini said.
“If UNRWA is no longer able to protect and assist Palestinian refugees, their rights to self-determination won’t vanish — they’ll only become more urgent.”
In his appeal to the international community, Lazzarini called for immediate action to prevent the legislation from taking effect, urging the UNSC to support UNRWA’s continued operations, ensure adequate funding, and facilitate a genuine political transition in the region.
He warned that without urgent intervention, the collapse of UNRWA would not only deepen the humanitarian crisis but also endanger the fragile peace in Gaza.
“The ceasefire must be followed by a political process that ensures the eventual handover of services to empowered Palestinian institutions,” he said. “UNRWA mustn’t be left to implode.”
As the international community grapples with these critical challenges, Lazzarini’s message was clear: The clock is ticking, and decisive action is needed to secure a future of peace and stability for Palestinians.
US Ambassador Dorothy Shea said it is “Israel’s sovereign decision to close UNRWA’s offices in Jerusalem,” and expressed American support for its implementation.  
“UNRWA exaggerating the effects of the laws and suggesting that they’ll force the entire humanitarian response to halt is irresponsible and dangerous,” she added.
“UNRWA isn’t, and never has been, the only option for providing humanitarian assistance in Gaza. Many other agencies have experience and expertise to do this work and have done this work.  
“UNRWA’s work has been tainted and its credibility questioned due to the terrorist ties to Hamas that UNRWA staff had that were exposed as a result of Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack.”   
With less than 48 hours left before the ban takes effect, the UN is uncertain what the next move will be.
UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said the organization will continue to do whatever it can to support the Palestinian population “that’s entitled to UNRWA’s services.”
He added that “we’re all moving into uncharted and complex waters,” and that the “UNRWA footprint can’t be replaced by other UN agencies.”


Kuwait PM says Trump’s decisions will impact global economy

Kuwait PM says Trump’s decisions will impact global economy
Updated 25 sec ago
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Kuwait PM says Trump’s decisions will impact global economy

Kuwait PM says Trump’s decisions will impact global economy
  • US president ‘only looking for his own benefits,’ says Sheikh Ahmad Abdullah Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah

DUBAI: Kuwait’s Prime Minister Sheikh Ahmad Abdullah Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah has warned that US President Donald Trump’s economic decisions would have “repercussions” for the entire world.

Speaking at the World Governments Summit in Dubai on Tuesday, in a departure from his planned speech, the prime minister said listening to Kristalina Georgieva, managing director of the IMF, about the direction of the global economy and AI “was a joy.”

He added: “But I need to ask you all to be very attentive to Trump’s decisions.

“He seems to be only looking for his own benefits which will affect the whole world and there will be repercussions.”

On Monday, Trump increased tariffs on steel and aluminum imports to a flat 25 percent, with no exceptions or exemptions.

Trump said his decision was aimed at supporting struggling American industries. But the action risks triggering a global trade war.

While signing the order at the White House, Trump announced plans to follow Monday’s action with reciprocal tariffs on all countries that levy duties on US goods within the next two days.

He also mentioned considering tariffs on cars, semiconductors and pharmaceuticals.

(Additional reporting from Reuters)


UN says staff member has died in custody of Houthis

UN says staff member has died in custody of Houthis
Updated 2 min 31 sec ago
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UN says staff member has died in custody of Houthis

UN says staff member has died in custody of Houthis
  • “WFP is grief-stricken and outraged about the death of a staff member while in detention in northern Yemen,” the agency said

DUBAI: The United Nations’s World Food Programme (WFP) said Tuesday that a staff member held captive by the Houthis in Yemen has died.
“WFP is grief-stricken and outraged about the death of a staff member while in detention in northern Yemen,” the agency said in a statement on X.
He was identified as a Yemeni staff member “arbitrarily detained by local authorities since 23 January,” though the circumstances of his death were not specified.
The employee, who WFP said had worked for the UN since 2017, left behind a wife and two children.
The United Nations announced the suspension Monday of its activities in Yemen’s Saada region, a Houthi stronghold, after the militia detained multiple personnel there this year.
The Iran-backed Houthis have arrested dozens of staffers from the UN and other humanitarian organizations, most of them since the middle of 2024, as Yemen’s decade-long civil war grinds on.
In January alone, the Houthis detained eight UN workers, including six in Saada, which adds to the dozens of NGO and UN personnel detained since June.
The Houthis claimed the June arrests included “an American-Israeli spy network” operating under the cover of humanitarian organizations — allegations emphatically rejected by the UN Human Rights Office.
A decade of war has plunged Yemen into one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises, according to the UN.


Equality in the world hindered by lack of connectivity warns telecoms boss

Equality in the world hindered by lack of connectivity warns telecoms boss
Updated 11 February 2025
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Equality in the world hindered by lack of connectivity warns telecoms boss

Equality in the world hindered by lack of connectivity warns telecoms boss
  • Connectivity has become one of the most important ingredients for progress

DUBAI: A massive 5.5 billion people have been connected around the world through such projects as the Edison Alliance, but half as many remain unconnected, Hatem Dowidar, group CEO at e&, told the World Governments Summit on Tuesday.

Dowidar said it was important to ensure this gap was addressed before it led to further economic divide in the future.

He gave the example of two students, one in an advanced economy with access to personalized artificial intelligence programs for education and the ability to collaborate globally with his peers, and another in a less wealthy nation, who had to walk for hours to reach school and had access to only the “very basic training and teaching equipment.”

He said: “These two have to compete in the future … It’s really unfair. And if we don’t do anything today to bridge that divide, it will become a bigger problem in the future.”

Connectivity has become one of the most important ingredients for progress, Dowidar said, adding: “We need to all work together, whether it’s governments, businesses (or) organizations.”

Today with the advancement of AI, this becomes even more critical as “we can really help a lot of the global south with solutions that improve education, healthcare and economic activity.”

Dowidar said there were signs of improvements in technology that would help increase connectivity, such as satellite technology, which was becoming more accessible.

Margherita Della Valle, CEO, Vodafone, said: “For society, connectivity today is essential … There cannot be any real development without connectivity. In Vodafone, we operate in 17 different countries across Europe and Africa, and our mission statement is very simple: We connect everyone wherever they are.”

Della Valle said her company’s most recent evolution — one they are most proud of — has been adding satellite connectivity to their networks.

“I think this is a great opportunity to connect those areas of the world which are most remote. Out of the 2.5 billion people who have no access to the internet, there are around 300 million who are nowhere near any form of connectivity, and satellite can get us there,” Vodafone’s CEO said two weeks ago she made the first mobile space video call in the world using a normal smartphone.

“We are now going to commercially launch the service later this year, and I think it’s a great opportunity to bring connectivity to the most remote areas of the planet,” she said.


African Union: Sudan war is world’s ‘worst humanitarian crisis’

African Union: Sudan war is world’s ‘worst humanitarian crisis’
Updated 11 February 2025
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African Union: Sudan war is world’s ‘worst humanitarian crisis’

African Union: Sudan war is world’s ‘worst humanitarian crisis’
  • The Sudanese army has been at war since April 2023 with the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces
  • The Sudanese army controls the east and north of the country while RSF holds most of Darfur region

ADDIS ABABA: African Union officials on Tuesday branded Sudan’s civil war the “worst humanitarian crisis in the world” and warned it was leaving hundreds of thousands of children malnourished.
The Sudanese army has been at war since April 2023 with the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in a conflict that has displaced around 12 million people, according to the AU and the International Rescue Committee.
It “has hampered access to humanitarian relief, led to shortage of food and aggravated hunger,” Mohamed Ibn Chambas, chairman of an AU panel on Sudan, said Tuesday on X.
“Children and women are continually abused, and the elderly and sick lack medical assistance,” he added.
“This is the worst humanitarian crisis in the world.”
A senior AU official for child welfare, Wilson Almeida Adao, said in a separate X post that hospital admissions for malnutrition rose by 44 percent in 2024, with over 431,000 children receiving treatment.
“We witness reports of grave violations, including attacks on schools and hospitals, forced recruitment of child soldiers, and the denial of humanitarian access,” he said.
The Sudanese army controls the east and north of the country while the RSF holds most of the stricken Darfur region, where the United Nations on Monday accused it of blocking aid.
For the AU, “only inter-Sudanese political dialogue, not the military option, can end this war,” said Chambas.


Syria’s Sharaa calls Trump Gaza plan ‘serious crime’ bound to fail

Syria’s Sharaa calls Trump Gaza plan ‘serious crime’ bound to fail
Updated 11 February 2025
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Syria’s Sharaa calls Trump Gaza plan ‘serious crime’ bound to fail

Syria’s Sharaa calls Trump Gaza plan ‘serious crime’ bound to fail
  • Trump had said the US would take over the war-ravaged Gaza Strip and develop it economically after Palestinians are resettled elsewhere

DUBAI: Syria Arab Republic’s new president, Ahmed Al-Sharaa, said in remarks broadcast on Monday he believes US President Donald Trump’s plan to resettle Palestinians from Gaza and take over the Strip “is a serious crime that will ultimately fail.”
Trump had said the US would take over the war-ravaged Gaza Strip and develop it economically after Palestinians are resettled elsewhere. He said Palestinians would not have the right of return to Gaza under his proposal.
In an interview with a UK podcast, Sharaa, an Islamist whose militant group Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham was once an affiliate of Al-Qaeda, said Trump’s proposal would not succeed.
“I believe no power can drive people from their land. Many countries have tried to do it and they have all failed, especially during the recent war in Gaza over the past year and a half,” he said.
Sharaa, declared president for a transitional phase after his group’s fighters led the overthrow of Bashar Assad, said it would be neither “wise nor morally or politically right” for Trump to lead an effort to force Palestinians out of their land.
“Over 80 years of this conflict, all attempts to displace them have failed; those who left have regretted their decision. The Palestinian lesson that every generation has learned is the importance of holding on to their land,” he added.
Egypt, Jordan and other Arab nations have strongly opposed any attempt to push Palestinians over the border.
They fear any mass movement across the border would further undermine prospects for a “two-state solution” – creating a state of Palestine next to Israel – and leave Arab nations dealing with the consequences.