Knesset Approves Referral of Bill to Cut Off Water and Electricity from UNRWA Offices

The Foreign Affairs and Security Committee of the Israeli Knesset approved on Tuesday the referral of a bill to cut off water and electricity from the offices of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees "UNRWA" for voting, as part of a systematic campaign to pressure the agency and restrict its role.

Last week, Israeli police forcibly raided the main headquarters of UNRWA in the occupied East Jerusalem, and seized what was inside, according to statements from UN agency officials.

The Foreign Affairs and Security Committee in the Knesset (Parliament) today approved the referral of a bill for voting in the second and third readings to stop the activities of UNRWA, and to clearly state that providing electricity and water services to properties registered in the agency's name will also be considered a prohibited act under the law.

In November last year, the Knesset approved the bill in the first reading with a majority of 28 members out of 120 and opposition from 8 members, and after voting, it was referred to the Foreign Affairs and Security Committee to prepare it for voting in the second and third readings.

The bill requires voting on it in three readings to become an enforceable law.

For his part, Energy Minister Eli Cohen said on Tuesday in a post on the American company "X" platform: "We turn off the lights on UNRWA".

He added: "The approval was given today by the Foreign Affairs and Security Committee on my bill to cut off electricity and water from UNRWA offices", without more details about the project.

He added: "It (the bill) will be brought for the second and third readings next week".

The Israeli campaign comes as the Palestinians' need for UNRWA increases, under the weight of the repercussions of a genocide war launched by Tel Aviv with American support on the Gaza Strip for two years, since October 8, 2023, until the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas came into effect on October 10 last year.

Earlier on Tuesday, UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said during an international event that over the past two years, more than 380 of the agency's staff in Gaza have been killed, and more than 300 of its facilities have been damaged or destroyed, in addition to Israel's expulsion of many international UNRWA staff from the occupied Palestinian territories.

In October 2024, the Knesset finally approved banning UNRWA activities in Israel, claiming that some of its staff participated in the events of October 7, 2023.

With American support, Israel launched a genocide war in Gaza on October 8, 2023, which lasted two years, and left more than 70,000 Palestinian dead and about 171,000 injured, most of them children and women.

Despite the ceasefire on October 10 last year, the living reality for Palestinians in Gaza has not improved due to the strict restrictions imposed by Israel on the entry of aid trucks, thus violating the humanitarian protocol of the agreement.