Israel has called for the dismantling of Unrwa, the UN agency for Palestinians, as the foreign secretary announced an increase in the UK’s funding for the organisation worth £23 million.
Yvette Cooper made the announcement on Tuesday, as she described the situation in Gaza as “desperate”.
“Families urgently need food, shelter, clean water, and medical support – I saw first-hand during my visit to Jordan how Unrwa is central to delivering help at the scale required.
“That is why the UK is announcing £23 million of support for Unrwa, alongside international partners, to help sustain its vital work for Palestine refugees across the region and civilians in Gaza.”
She continued to accuse Israel of restricting the flow of aid to Gaza: “Unrwa must be able to operate safely and effectively. We condemn the Israeli government for preventing aid agencies like Unrwa from undertaking lifesaving work. This means all crossings must be opened, and supplies must be allowed in.”
However, on Wednesday, a spokesperson for Israel’s embassy in London called for the agency to be abolished and accused staff members of the organisation of taking part in terrorist atrocities on October 7, 2023.
UNRWA has completely failed its mission. Instead of being strengthened, it should be dismantled. Israel remains committed to its obligations under international law, as well as to the facilitation of humanitarian assistance. This is indisputable.
— Israel in the UK 🇮🇱🤝🇬🇧 (@IsraelinUK) July 1, 2026
Unfortunately that cannot be… pic.twitter.com/HMx2lArukG
“Unrwa has completely failed its mission. Instead of being strengthened, it should be dismantled. Israel remains committed to its obligations under international law, as well as to the facilitation of humanitarian assistance. This is indisputable,” they said adding: “Unfortunately, that cannot be said about Unrwa”.
The statement continued: “Hundreds of Unrwa employees have been identified as members of Hamas or other terrorist organisations, demonstrating the extent to which terrorist elements have infiltrated the agency.
"Unrwa's education system has been deeply corrupted, brainwashing and exposing generations to hatred, extremism and support for Hamas.
“Unrwa employees actively participated in the October 7 massacre. Unrwa facilities in Gaza have been regularly and systematically exploited by Hamas for terrorist purposes, including tunnels, weapons storage and other terrorist infrastructure. This points to a systemic failure at the heart of the organisation.”
Israel’s embassy then accused the group of being “part of the crisis rather than its solution” and a “dysfunctional organisation that has caused immense harm” that “must now be brought to an end before more damage is done”.
British-Israeli hostage Emily Damari previously told Sir Keir Starmer that she was held captive in an Unrwa facility.
Earlier this month, the USAID inspector general’s report claimed that over 100 Unrwa staff participated in terrorist atrocities on October 7, 2023.
However, Unrwa has denied institutional complicity in the attacks and insisted that it has dismissed staff where proof has come to light of their involvement.
One of the earliest decisions of the Labour government, shortly after their general election victory, was to restore funding to Unrwa after it had been paused by the Conservatives.
Given the ongoing row about defence spending, and an apparent £4.7 billion hole required for the government’s defence investment plan, some criticised the increase in funding for the controversial UN agency.
Andrew Fox, a former British Army officer and senior associate fellow at the Henry Jackson Society, a centre-right foreign policy think tank, posted on X: “We can’t fund our own defences but we can spunk £23m on a terrorist-aligned group whose enclave has been flooded with more aid than it is humanly possible to consume.
"I know this because I have sat in Kiryat Gat and seen truck after truck enter Gaza with my own eyes.”
His comments were shared by former Foreign Office minister Lord Goldsmith.
Unrwa has been contacted for comment.
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