Middle East latest: At least 60 'killed in Israeli attack' on Gaza - as Hezbollah appoints new leader

By means of Alistair BunkallMiddle East correspondent in Jerusalem

Israel’s decision to ban the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) from its territory and sever diplomatic ties with it could have a devastating impact on millions of Palestinians who rely on its services.

Unless action is taken, the ban will come into effect in 90 days. Last night’s vote in the Knesset – Israel’s parliament – will also prevent Israel from issuing work permits to UNRWA staff and prevent Israeli authorities from cooperating with the organization, hampering aid access to Gaza and the future for UNRWA schools and medical institutions. facilities in East Jerusalem and the West Bank.

Many of Israel’s closest allies, including the US, Britain, France and Germany, had urged the Israeli government to rethink – they were ignored.

The UN Secretary General said this will have “devastating consequences”, and the British Prime Minister said he was “deeply concerned”.

The US State Department has warned that this could have implications for US law, implying that Washington could reconsider arms transfers to Israel unless the ban is reversed. U.S. law prohibits the country from providing military assistance to anyone who is denied humanitarian access.

Although Israel says it will try to ensure that aid is still provided to those who need it, no plan or alternative agency has been put forward, and it will be difficult to tap the expertise of UNRWA, which is in the has been built up over many decades.

UNRWA, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, was founded in 1949 to support Palestinians displaced during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war.

Today, it provides services including education, healthcare, street cleaning, financial start-up loans and housing to nearly six million Palestinian refugees in Gaza, East Jerusalem, the occupied West Bank, Syria, Jordan and Lebanon.

Israel has long disagreed with the status of Palestinian refugees because it gives them, at least in theory, a “right of return,” meaning they retain a claim to property and land in modern-day Israel.

Since the October 7 attacks, the Israeli state has repeatedly and vociferously accused UNRWA of being a front for Hamas, claiming that the group used schools and hospitals to hide weapons and plan attacks.

Although nine UNRWA employees have been fired by the UN for links to Hamas, many of Israel’s claims have been made with little supporting evidence.

A number of countries briefly suspended funding for the agency, but almost all have since restored it.

Israel has barred many of its employees from entering Israel, including the agency’s commissioner general.