Israel ban on UN agency blatantly violates int’l law, Ankara says

Israel ban on UN agency blatantly violates int’l law, Ankara says

ANKARA
Israel ban on UN agency blatantly violates int’l law, Ankara saysIsrael ban on UN agency blatantly violates int’l law, Ankara says

The move by Israel to ban the U.N.-led relief agency’s work to help Palestinians in the occupied territories is a blatant violation of international law, the Turkish Foreign Ministry has said.

“Israel's decision to ban the activities of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East [UNRWA] in the occupied Palestinian territories is a blatant violation of international law,” read a written statement by the ministry on Jan. 30.

“We condemn this step, which marks a new phase in Israel's policies of occupation and annexation aimed at forcibly displacing Palestinians from their own land,” it said.

Israel is seeking to deprive Palestine refugees of their right to return to their lands, the ministry underlined, recalling that the UNRWA was established by the U.N. General Assembly in 1949 and has been providing humanitarian services to the millions of Palestinians since.

“At this critical juncture, we call on the international community to support UNRWA and to take the necessary steps toward regional peace,” added the statement, reiterating that “Türkiye stands unwavering in its support of UNRWA and in defending the rights of the Palestinian people.”

Israel claims that the UNRWA is equal to Hamas and its members are acting on behalf of the latter. It banned the U.N.-led agency to operate on its territories, putting the flow of basic humanitarian aid to the Palestinians at risk.