Summary

  • Gazans tell the BBC they fear they will find it hard to get basics like flour and oil if the UN Palestinian refugee agency Unrwa is banned by Israel

  • "We have nothing in this country but the flour from Unrwa. We hope that this decision is stopped and cancelled," one resident tells the BBC

  • Israel's allies have condemned last night's vote in the Israeli parliament that would effectively ban Unrwa, under laws due to come into effect within three months

  • But a senior ally of Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu tells the BBC Israel will not give in to international pressure

  • Israel has objected to Unrwa for decades, with hostility hitting a boiling point after the 7 October attacks, with the country claiming some of the agency's staff were involved

  • In a separate development, more than 90 Palestinians have been killed or are missing after an Israeli attack in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip, according to the Hamas-run health ministry

Live Reporting

Edited by Emily Atkinson

  1. Countries express concern following Israel's decision

    Several allies have expressed serious concern following the Israeli parliament's decision to ban the UN's Palestinian refugee agency (Unrwa).

    The US State Department said Unrwa played a "critical" role in distributing humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip, and that "there is nobody that can replace them right now in the middle of the crisis".

    UK PM Keir Starmer said he was "gravely concerned", and that the law risks making Unrwa's "essential work for Palestinians impossible, jeopardising the entire international humanitarian response in Gaza".

    Germany’s commissioner for human rights policy and humanitarian assistance, Luise Amtsberg, warned the move would "effectively make Unrwa's work in Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem impossible... jeopardising vital humanitarian aid for millions of people".

    Belgium said it “deeply regrets” the new legislation.

    The governments of Slovenia, Ireland, Spain, and Norway released a joint statement condemning Israel’s ban and warned that it set a “very serious” precedent for the work of the UN and all organisations of the multilateral system.

    UN Secretary General António Guterres warned of "devastating consequences" if the laws are implemented and said they would be "detrimental for the resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and for peace and security in the region as a whole".

  2. Ban will limit Unrwa's operations in Gaza and West Bank

    A damaged sign is pictured at the headquarters of UNRWA, following an Israeli raid, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Gaza CityReuters

    Israel's parliament voted to pass laws last night banning the UN's Palestinian refugee agency (Unrwa) from operating within Israel and Israeli-occupied East Jerusalem - within three months.

    It will include banning contact between Unrwa employees and Israeli officials, Unrwa staff no longer having legal immunity within Israel, and closing the agency's headquarters in East Jerusalem.

    This move will severely limit the agency's ability to operate in Gaza and the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

    Yuli Edelstein, chair of the Israeli parliament's foreign affairs and security committee, accused Unrwa of having a "deep connection" with Hamas. Unrwa has insisted that dealings with Hamas are purely to enable the agency to do its job.

  3. Israel's allies come out against vote to ban Unrwa

    We are starting live coverage of events in the Middle East, as Israel's allies condemn a vote in the Israeli parliament banning the UN's Palestinian refugee agency Unrwa from working in the country.

    Washington has urged Israel to pause the passage of the laws, which are due to come into effect in three months. While the UN chief Antonio Guterres has said a ban would have devastating consequences for Palestinians.

    Israel has previously alleged that some Unrwa employees were involved in the 7 October attacks. The UN held an investigation and fired nine staff members.

    Stay with us as we take in all the reaction, and look at the wider conflicting still unfolding in the region.