The United States-led Board of Peace (BoP) has said the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) will have no role in Gaza – echoing a longstanding Israeli demand to sideline the organisation considered a lifeline for millions of Palestinians.
asserted
agency → lead → Palestinians
The board, which has been tasked with overseeing the “ceasefire” and Gaza’s reconstruction, said on Friday it would work only with partners it deems reliable and who it believes can meet the needs of Gaza’s population – a standard it says UNRWA does not meet.
asserted
UNRWA → task → population
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The move comes as the BoP unveiled a multibillion-dollar plan on Wednesday aimed at beginning Gaza’s reconstruction, nearly a year after a so-called “ceasefire” came into effect in the devastated Palestinian territory.
asserted
ceasefire → watch → territory
The plan, presented on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly (UNGA), comes as key elements of the “ceasefire” remain stalled, including the withdrawal of Israeli forces and the disarmament of Hamas.
asserted
elements → present → Hamas
UNRWA was established in 1949 to cater to tens of thousands of Palestinians displaced from their homes by Jewish militias from areas that currently form part of Israel.
asserted
that → establish → Israel
BoP’s stance on UNRWA comes as Israel’s genocide in the coastal enclave continues, with Palestinians facing nonstop attacks, severe restrictions on humanitarian aid and stalled reconstruction plans.
asserted
Palestinians → come → aid
So what has BoP said about UNRWA, and does it keep toeing the Israeli line on the future of Gaza?
asserted
it → say → Gaza
What did the Board of Peace say?
asserted
Board → say → Peace
The BoP unveiled a 66-project reconstruction blueprint on the sidelines of the UNGA, with $2.4bn proposed for projects aimed at beginning Gaza’s recovery.
asserted
2.4bn → unveil → recovery
UNRWA was left off the list of UN agencies the board identified as partners.
asserted
board → leave → partners
“The Board of Peace’s policy as it relates to UNRWA’s involvement in Gaza is unchanged,” the BoP said in a post on X on Friday.
asserted
BoP → relate → Friday
“We will only work with trusted partners who will deliver for the people of Gaza and contribute to a deradicalised Strip.
asserted
who → work → Strip
UNRWA fails on those litmus tests.”
asserted
UNRWA → fail → tests
However, a BoP official, speaking to The Associated Press news agency on condition of anonymity, confirmed that board members had met UNRWA officials several times.
asserted
members → speak → officials
The official said the agency’s programmes could continue if they served Gaza’s residents well, but maintained that “UNRWA’s days are over”.
uncertain
days → say → residents
The BoP, which US President Donald Trump launched earlier this year, was conceived to oversee the rebuilding of Gaza after nearly three years of Israel’s genocidal war on the Strip.
asserted
Trump → launch → Strip
What has UNRWA said?
asserted
UNRWA → say → What
In an indirect response, UNRWA acting Commissioner-General Christian Saunders said on Friday in Gaza, “UNRWA remains an institution of considerable humanitarian and strategic value, with capabilities and expertise that are difficult to replicate today.”
asserted
that → act → capabilities
“To disregard these capabilities at a moment of such profound need is neither logical nor responsible,” Saunders said in a statement.
asserted
Saunders → disregard → statement
Former UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini on Thursday warned that removing the agency would have a “devastating” effect on Palestinians.
asserted
removing → warn → Palestinians
“They want to get rid of the agency, but on the other hand they know that if you get completely rid of the agency today, it might have a further … devastating impact on the population
uncertain
it → want → population
,” Lazzarini told AP on Friday.
asserted
Lazzarini → tell → Friday
In a separate statement on X, Lazzarini said, “grandiose plans are what the Board of Peace does best”, noting widespread suffering across Gaza amid Israel’s ongoing genocide.
asserted
Board → say → genocide
The agency has about 11,000 Palestinian employees in Gaza and remains heavily involved in healthcare, education, water and sanitation services.
asserted
agency → have → services
Its exclusion is particularly significant given the scale of displacement and the continuing restrictions on aid entering Gaza.
asserted
aid → give → Gaza
UNRWA has for decades provided aid and education services to Palestinians in Gaza, occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank as well as Jordan, Syria and Lebanon – the neighbouring countries where the Palestinian refugees have been living.
asserted
refugees → provide → Gaza
Palestinians see the agency as safeguarding their right of return to their homeland, while Israel wants it dismantled.
asserted
it → see → homeland
What has Hamas said?
asserted
Hamas → say → What
Hamas accused the BoP of adopting Israel’s position.
asserted
Hamas → accuse → position
Spokesperson Hazem Qassem on Saturday called the decision to exclude UNRWA “a complete alignment with the Zionist [Israeli] position”, saying it was aimed at ending the agency’s operations, preventing it from delivering aid and undermining Palestinian refugees’ right of return.
asserted
it → call → return
Qassem said it was “strange for the peace council to adopt this hostile stance towards UNRWA while simultaneously failing to provide aid to Gaza or compel the occupation to abide by the ceasefire agreement and halt the daily killings of Palestinians in the Strip”.
asserted
council → say → Strip
Does the Board of Peace toe the Israeli line?
asserted
Board → toe → line
Experts say the workings and demands of the BoP align closely with Israel’s vision of the Gaza Strip and the Palestinians.
asserted
workings → say → Strip
UNRWA
Israel has for years sought to remove UNRWA from Gaza, accusing the agency of being infiltrated by Hamas.
asserted
Israel → seek → Hamas
The International Court of Justice, in an advisory opinion in October, said allegations that “a significant part of UNRWA’s employees are ‘members of Hamas … or other terrorist factions'” had not been substantiated.
asserted
part → say → Hamas
The BoP’s position strengthens the Israeli efforts to dismantle the UN agency.
asserted
position → strengthen → agency
Hamas and other Palestinian factions agreed in July to a roadmap under which weapons would be surrendered in stages as Israeli forces gradually withdrew.
asserted
forces → agree → stages
The two processes were explicitly linked.
asserted
processes → link → ?
But following an August meeting between Nickolay Mladenov, the BoP’s director-general, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the board said Israeli forces would not withdraw beyond the “Yellow Line” until Hamas’s decommissioning was complete, including “light weapons, heavy weapons, and the tunnels alike”.
asserted
decommissioning → follow → weapons
Hamas maintains that it will not implement its obligations unless Israel fulfils its own.
asserted
Israel → maintain → own
…and 9 more, not listed.
The Aporia
