Arab countries have welcomed the decision of the United Nations General Assembly, which calls on the International Court of Justice to issue an advisory legal opinion regarding Israel’s ban on the activities of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency. Palestine refugees (UNRWA).
This is evident from statements released Friday by Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and the League of Arab States.
The Qatari Foreign Ministry welcomed the decision, noting that “its adoption by a majority of 137 votes reflects a broad international rejection of the decisions of the Israeli occupation authorities to prohibit the activities of UNRWA.”
Qatar warned that disrupting UNRWA activities would lead to “dangerous humanitarian and political consequences, including depriving millions of Palestinians of necessary services in Gaza, the West Bank and neighboring countries, as well as liquidating the issue of Palestinian refugees and their right of return.
In a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia also welcomed this decision, saying that it reflects an international consensus on the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination and to establish their independent state, and Riyadh appreciated positive positions. countries that supported the decision.
The United Arab Emirates also expressed support for the UN resolution, according to a statement from its mission to the United Nations.
The statement confirmed that the UAE co-sponsored the resolution and voted in favor, emphasizing the importance of respect for international law throughout the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
For his part, the secretary general of the Arab League, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, welcomed the vote which he described as “broad” in favor of the resolution, believing that it reflects international public opinion rejecting attempts to Israel to “end the role of UNRWA”. .”
Aboul Gheit said: “This decision particularly reflects the deep concern that humanitarian response operations in Gaza will completely collapse if UNRWA’s role in the Gaza Strip ends, as Israel wishes. »
On Thursday, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution on UNRWA affirming “its full support for the agency’s mandate in all its areas of work, namely Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and the occupied Palestinian territories “.
The General Assembly resolution denounced the ban legislation passed by the Israeli Knesset on October 28, 2024, and called on the Israeli government to “uphold its international obligations and respect the agency’s privileges and immunities.”
Israel claims that UNRWA employees support the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), which has been denied by the agency, which the United Nations has confirmed is committed to neutrality.
It should be noted that the implementation of Israeli legislation will mean the cessation of UNRWA’s work in the occupied Palestinian territories, which will lead to an aggravation of the process of starvation of Palestinians and a deterioration of their current tragic conditions.
With American support, Israel has been committing genocide against the Palestinian people in Gaza since October 7, 2023, leaving more than 152,000 Palestinian martyrs and wounded, mostly children and women, and more than 11,000 people missing, in a context of mass destruction and famine. who killed children and the elderly.
Tel Aviv continues its massacres, ignoring two arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court on November 21 against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Galant, accused of having committed war crimes and crimes against humanity against the Palestinians in Gaza.