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Israel passes laws restricting UN aid agency over concerns of ties to Hamas

Israel passes laws restricting UN aid agency over concerns of ties to Hamas


Israel passes laws restricting UN aid agency over concerns of ties to Hamas

Israeli lawmakers passed two laws Monday aimed at restricting the activities of the main United Nations agency providing aid to people in Gaza because of its concerns that some people who work for the agency have ties to the Hamas terrorist group.

Under the first law, the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, or UNRWA, would be banned from conducting “any activity” or providing any service inside Israel, while the second would sever diplomatic ties with it.

Israel has alleged that some of UNRWA’s thousands of staff members participated in the October 2023 Hamas attacks that sparked the war in Gaza. It also has said hundreds of UNRWA staff have terrorist ties and that it has found Hamas military assets near or under the agency’s facilities.

The agency fired nine employees after an investigation but denies it knowingly aids armed groups, and says it acts quickly to purge any suspected terrorists from its ranks. Some of Israel’s allegations prompted major international donors to cut funding to the agency, although some of it has been restored.

The first vote passed 92-10 and followed a fiery debate between supporters of the law and its opponents, mostly members of Arab parliamentary parties. The second law was approved 87-9.