jordan pulse -

The Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), Philippe Lazzarini, said on Wednesday that the attack against the agency “is not about neutrality” but aims to “strip Palestinian refugees of their refugee status.”

UNRWA accuses a number of its employees of participating in the attack of last October 7 on territories occupied by Israel.



Lazzarini explained during a joint press conference with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriate Affairs, Ayman Safadi, before a session of the UN Security Council, that “the attack against UNRWA is not about neutrality, but its goal is to strip Palestinian refugees of their refugee status, and this is where the danger lies.”

Lazzarini said, "UNRWA is accused of perpetuating refugee status, and this means the absence of a political solution," noting that today's discussion in the Security Council aims to "raise the most dangerous matters if the agency is dissolved before a political solution is reached" to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

Lazzarini expressed his thanks to Jordan for its "strong support for UNRWA, and for being a wonderful host for refugees in general and Palestinians in particular."

He described the situation in the Gaza Strip as "catastrophic and tragic," pointing to "challenges" facing UNRWA's work in the besieged Strip.

He pointed out that the agency is "under great pressure in the West Bank and Gaza," pointing out that "campaigns and countries have suspended their support for UNRWA due to the horrific allegations that a number of agency members participated in the October 7 attack."



He stated that the agency terminated the work of these employees and launched a UN investigation in this regard, noting that a French foreign minister had previously requested a review of the risk management process at the agency.

He said that the UN Security Council will discuss calls to dismantle UNRWA.