Star Metro - Israel begins demolitions at UNRWA headquarters in east Jerusalem

UNRWA spokesman Jonathan Fowler said in a statement to AFP that Israeli forces "stormed into" the compound shortly after 7am (0500 GMT) and ousted security guards from the site, before bulldozers entered and began demolishing buildings.

"This is an unprecedented attack against UNRWA and its premises. And it also constitutes a serious violation of international law and the privileges and immunities of the United Nations," Fowler said.

"This should be a wake-up call," he added.

"What happens today to UNRWA can happen tomorrow to any other international organisation or diplomatic mission around the world."

AFP photos showed heavy machinery demolishing structures at the compound, where an Israeli flag fluttered overhead.

An AFP photographer reported that far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir had made a brief visit to the site.

"This is a historic day, a day of celebration, and a very important day for governance in Jerusalem," Ben Gvir was quoted as saying in a statement.

"For years, these supporters of terrorism were here, and today they are being removed from here along with everything they built in this place. This is what will happen to every supporter of terrorism," he added.

Israel has repeatedly accused UNRWA of providing cover for Hamas militants, claiming that some of its employees took part in the group's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which sparked the war in Gaza.

A series of investigations, including one led by France's former foreign minister Catherine Colonna, found some "neutrality-related issues" at UNRWA but stressed Israel had not provided conclusive evidence for its headline allegation.

- 'No immunity' -

In a statement, the Israeli foreign ministry defended the demolitions and said "the state of Israel owns the Jerusalem compound".

"Today's move does not constitute a new policy, but rather the implementation of existing Israeli legislation concerning UNRWA-Hamas."

The compound in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem has been empty of UNRWA staff since January 2025, when a law banning its operations took effect after a months-long battle over its work in the Gaza Strip.

"UNRWA-Hamas had already ceased its operations at this site and no longer had any UN personnel or UN activity there," the foreign ministry said.

"The compound does not enjoy any immunity and the seizure of this compound by Israeli authorities was carried out in accordance with both Israeli and international law," it added.

Though the UNRWA ban applies in east Jerusalem due to its annexation by Israel, the agency still operates in the occupied West Bank and Gaza.

In early December, UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini denounced the seizure by Israeli authorities of assets from the compound, which police told AFP was part of a debt-collection operation.

In a post on X, Lazzarini said authorities took "furniture, IT equipment and other property", while the compound's UN flag was replaced with an Israeli one.

At the time, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres issued a statement strongly condemning the "unauthorised entry", saying the compound remained "United Nations premises and is inviolable and immune from any other form of interference".

Months after the war in Gaza began in October 2023, Israeli authorities declared Guterres and Lazzarini as persona non grata in Israel.

M.Johnston--SMC