Israel Raids and Seizes UNRWA Training Center in East Jerusalem

Israeli forces have raided the Qalandiya Training Center, a key facility operated by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in the town of Kafr Aqab, located in occupied East Jerusalem.

Prior to Tuesday's raid, the Israeli military had blocked the nearby Qalandiya checkpoint. Military forces were deployed heavily in the surrounding areas and the Qalandiya refugee camp. Soldiers forcibly expelled all UNRWA staff from the area, ordered them not to return, and began operations to vacate the entire complex.

Israel's far-right National Security Minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, took part directly in the raid. Speaking from the scene, Ben-Gvir praised the operation, declaring that the authorities had begun a "campaign to vacate the building," and asserted that "there is no place for this agency in Jerusalem and Israel."

Following the incident, Israel's Foreign Ministry announced that the Jerusalem Municipality had initiated procedures to convert the site into a new educational and community complex. The ministry said the project would serve thousands of Palestinians living in Kafr Aqab, with plans including schools, a mosque, sports fields, and a medical center.

Israeli officials have alleged that the land has been owned by the Jewish National Fund since 1937 and was allocated to the Jerusalem Municipality for the project. They argued that UNRWA fenced off the site for decades without legal ownership. Israel's Foreign Ministry directly cited the anti-UNRWA law passed by the Knesset in October 2024, which bans the agency's activities on Israeli territory, to justify the seizure.

UNRWA has categorically rejected these allegations, affirming that the Qalandiya Training Center is a UN facility and is protected under international law. Journalist Sarah Abu Alrob, reporting from Ramallah in the West Bank, highlighted the severe impact of this decision on residents. She said the center provides essential services to 16,000 Palestinian refugees at the Qalandiya camp or from across the West Bank.

According to Alrob, the raid follows a similar operation months earlier, when Israeli forces attacked UNRWA's headquarters in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of East Jerusalem, evacuating all staff and partially demolishing the building. She commented: "This is part of a larger campaign, as the Israeli government is calling for the dissolution of UNRWA, an agency that provides education, health, and social services to Palestinian refugees in the West Bank."

Human rights activists and legal experts have condemned the action. Lawyer Mohammad Dahleh, a human rights activist in East Jerusalem, described the seizure as a direct violation of international law and the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice (ICJ). He emphasized UNRWA's critical role during the crisis, especially when Palestinian refugees are in most need of support in Gaza and the West Bank.