Doha: Qatar has strongly condemned the Israeli Knesset’s recent approval of bills that prohibit the operations of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) within the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT). The decision is seen by Qatar as a dangerous precedent against the United Nations and multilateralism, as well as a concerning development in what it describes as the occupation’s genocidal actions against the defenseless Palestinian population.
According to Jordan News Agency, the Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement on Tuesday evening highlighting the severe humanitarian conditions faced by the besieged Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip. The statement pointed out the ongoing brutal aggression targeting them for over a year, which has resulted in the obstruction of necessary aid delivery and the use of food and medicine as weapons.
The ministry warned that the ban on UNRWA operations would have serious humanitarian and political reperc
ussions. It would deprive millions of Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon, Jordan, and Syria of essential services and undermine the Palestinian refugees’ right to return to their homes, a right guaranteed by international law and United Nations resolutions, specifically UN General Assembly Resolutions 194 and 237.
Qatar reiterated its full support for UNRWA and reaffirmed its commitment to the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people, including their right to establish an independent state based on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.