Israel to shut water, electricity at UNRWA facilities in occupied territories
Israel will begin cutting off water and electricity to United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) facilities in the occupied Palestinian territories, a top Israeli minister announced on Wednesday.
Israel's Energy and Infrastructure Minister Eli Cohen told The Jerusalem Post that he will "personally" oversee the shutdown of utilities to UNRWA offices in occupied al-Quds starting today.
Cohen accused the agency of operating "in a systematic way to incite against Israel." He said utility companies had been formally instructed to carry out the cutoff, which is expected to be completed within two weeks.”
“In principle, the law was passed about two weeks ago. Warning letters have already been sent to properties that we identified as belonging to UNRWA,” he added.
“We are now working to locate all UNRWA assets, evacuate them where necessary, and in some cases, seize the properties," Cohen said. "Where they continue operating, we will disconnect electricity and shut down the buildings."
Israel’s parliament, known as the Knesset, passed legislation in late December stripping UNRWA of diplomatic immunity. The law exposes the agency to legal action in Israeli courts, bars the regime's companies from supplying it with water, electricity, or financial services, and allows authorities to seize its offices in occupied East al-Quds.
UN agencies are normally protected by diplomatic immunity under international conventions ratified by Israel. Tel Aviv’s move to revoke these protections comes amid a broader crackdown that began after it launched its genocidal war on Gaza in October 2023.
Israel also began demolishing UNRWA’s headquarters in al-Quds on Tuesday.
UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini condemned the demolition, calling it “an unprecedented attack” and “a new level of deliberate defiance of international law.”
Established in 1949 by a UN General Assembly resolution, UNRWA provides assistance and protection to Palestinian refugees across Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, the occupied West Bank, and the Gaza Strip.
The shutdown of its facilities has drawn sharp international criticism since Israel first moved to curtail the agency’s operations in areas under its control.
The ban severed contact between UNRWA and Israeli authorities, severely restricting its ability to operate in Gaza and the occupied West Bank. Israel has also stopped issuing visas to UNRWA staff.
The agency, which provides essential education, healthcare and humanitarian aid to millions of Palestinians, played a central role in delivering food, medicine and shelter during Israel’s war on Gaza, with many of its schools used as shelters for displaced civilians.
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