Israel takes control of UNRWA training centre in East Jerusalem
Israeli forces took control of a vocational training centre run by the UN agency for Palestinian refugees in the East Jerusalem suburb of Kafr Aqab on Aug 25, in the latest move targeting the organisation. The raid drew condemnation from UN chief Antonio Guterres and followed warnings by UNRWA that Israeli authorities were threatening its Qalandia training centre, located between the East Jerusalem neighbourhood of Kafr Aqab and the Qalandia refugee camp.
The centre, established in 1952, offers vocational training to around 340 Palestinians from the occupied West Bank each year, according to UNRWA.
"In accordance with my directive and following the law we passed, today the evacuation of the UNRWA compound in Kafr Aqab in Jerusalem has begun," a statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said.
"The State of Israel will not allow an organisation whose employees were involved in terrorism and in the Oct 7 massacre to operate within its territory and will act against it with all available means," it added.
Israel has repeatedly accused UNRWA of providing cover for Hamas militants, claiming that some of its employees took part in the group's Oct 7, 2023 attack on Israel that sparked the war in Gaza.
Context: Legislation and investigations
Legislation severing ties with the agency and banning it from operating on Israeli territory took effect in January 2025. A series of investigations, including one led by France's former foreign minister Catherine Colonna, found some "neutrality-related issues" at UNRWA but stressed that Israel had not provided conclusive evidence for its headline allegation.
The Israeli parliament passed a law in 2024 banning UNRWA's operations after disputed claims that some of its employees were involved in the Oct 7 attack, according to The National.
The incident
UNRWA said Israeli forces "forcibly entered" at around 10am local time, with at least four armoured vehicles and more than 50 security personnel. Around 20 UNRWA staff were on site at the time. The agency "unequivocally" condemned the incursion and said the entry of armed forces without UN authorisation was unacceptable.
An AFP journalist at the scene said Israeli forces had closed the main road near the entrance.
Israeli forces raised a flag over the compound, and the far-right Israeli politician Itamar Ben Gvir celebrated "making history" by posting a photo of the Israeli flag with caption "UNRWA in our hands". An AFP journalist at the scene reported Israeli forces had sealed off the main road.
Palestinian official media said about 40 people were detained and questioned before Israeli forces began demolishing part of the site, as reported by The National.
International reaction
Guterres's spokesman said the secretary-general was "greatly alarmed" by the incursion, adding that UNRWA premises "are premises of the United Nations. They are inviolable and immune from any form of interference." Israeli ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, said he had sent a letter to Guterres saying that UNRWA had no property rights to the compound, that Israel had notified the agency and the UN in advance.
UNRWA condemned the incursion as "deeply not concerning" and said the entry of armed security forces into a UN facility without authorisation was unacceptable, reported The National. Israel's foreign ministry announced work on a "new educational and community complex" and said UNRWA had blocked the land for decades despite holding no property rights.
The Palestinian foreign ministry condemned Israel's actions, saying the measures Ab to "Challenge the status and immunities of the United Nations and to impose facts on the ground by force."
West Bank context
Separately, in the occupied West Bank, an Israeli MP took a sledgehammer to a monument in the village of Madama, which he said commemorated "murderers of dozens of Jews". Netanyahu said security in the occupied West Bank was a matter for the Israeli military and that taking the law into one's own hands was unacceptable.
Violence against Palestinians in the West Bank has surged during the Oct 7 attacks, with Israeli settlers torching and vandalising villages, sometimes resulting in deadly clashes and rarely drawing any action by Israeli authorities.
Israeli left-wing activists confronted a group of settlers near Jannatah near Bethlehem; three AFP journalists were injured during the scuffle.
Background
Israel occupied and annexed East Jerusalem in 1967 in a move not recognised by much of the international community. The raid on the Qalandia centre came a day after representatives from more than 25 diplomatic missions and international organisations visited the site, a demonstration of international attention.