Palestine welcomes the renewal of the United Nations' mandate for UNRWA until June 30, 2029.

Palestine welcomed, on Wednesday, the adoption by the Fourth Committee of the United Nations General Assembly of the renewal of the mandate of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) until June 30, 2029.

This came in a statement from the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, commenting on the adoption by the UN Fourth Committee, which is concerned with special political issues and decolonization, of a decision expressing regret for the failure to return Palestinian refugees to their homes or compensate them, stating that their situation "continues to raise serious concern."

The decision, which received the support of 149 countries, opposition from 10 countries, and abstention from 13, included the renewal of UNRWA's mandate until June 30, 2029, and emphasized the importance of the agency carrying out its work "without obstacles."

The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates stated that it welcomes the decision of the UN committee, which received "broad and unprecedented international support."

It clarified that this support "embodies the status of the Palestinian cause in the global conscience and a clear rejection of the policies of Israeli colonial occupation."

On October 28, 2024, the Knesset (Israeli parliament) finally approved, by a large majority, two laws preventing UNRWA from conducting any activities within Israel and withdrawing privileges and facilities from it, as well as prohibiting any official contact with it. The decision came into effect at the end of January.

UNRWA was established by a resolution of the United Nations General Assembly in 1949 and was mandated to provide assistance and protection to Palestinian refugees in its five areas of operation: Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip, where it provides relief, health, and educational services to about 6 million Palestinian refugees.

The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the importance of international decisions is highlighted in that they "reaffirm the centrality of the Palestinian refugees' issue and their inalienable rights, foremost among them their right to return to their homes and properties and to compensation for them."

It added that these decisions "clearly reject all Israeli attempts to obliterate these rights or circumvent them, and emphasize the necessity of protecting the properties of refugees and maintaining their records, as well as the continuation of UNRWA's mandate and providing financial and political support to it, as it is the first line of defense for millions of Palestinian refugees in its five areas of operation."

It continued that "the overwhelming vote confirms the international community's rejection of annexation, settlement, forced displacement, collective punishment, and the widespread destruction of infrastructure in the occupied Palestinian territory, and the genocide in the Gaza Strip."

The adoption of the decisions comes after two years of the Israeli genocide war on Gaza, which began on October 8, 2023, and ended with a ceasefire on October 10, leaving more than 69,000 Palestinian dead and over 170,000 injured, most of whom are children and women, with reconstruction costs estimated by the United Nations at about $70 billion.

Simultaneously, the West Bank witnessed an Israeli escalation in which assaults by the army and settlers resulted in the deaths of at least 1,076 Palestinians, injuries to about 10,760 others, in addition to the arrest of more than 20,500 others, since the beginning of the genocide war in Gaza.