Arab League Calls for UN Resolution against Israel's UNRWA Ban

The initiative came during an extraordinary session of the Arab League Council at the level of permanent representatives in Cairo following a request by Jordan to discuss the Arab response to a recent decision by the Israeli Knesset, or parliament, to ban UNRWA’s operations, Anadolu Agency reported.

The meeting demanded in its decision that "the representatives of Arab countries in New York coordinate with the ambassadors and representatives of friendly countries and the UN Secretariat to request a special session of the UN General Assembly, as it is the body that issued the decision to establish UNRWA, to discuss the repercussions of this serious Israeli law and to issue a UN resolution rejecting this illegal Israeli measure.”

It also called on "the Arab Parliament, the parliaments of Arab countries, and the Inter-Parliamentary Union to act by pressuring the Israeli Knesset to repeal the decision to halt UNRWA’s operations, considering that this decision constitutes a clear and direct violation of international norms and agreements, and to study steps to suspend the Knesset's membership in the Inter-Parliamentary Union."

The league emphasized in its decision the necessity of "continuing to provide the necessary political and financial support to UNRWA so that it can continue to fulfill its role according to its UN mandate in its five areas of operations," which are Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

On Tuesday, Jordan formally asked the pan-Arab bloc to hold an emergency meeting to discuss a collective response to the Knesset's legislation.

The Knesset passed a bill Monday banning UNRWA from operating in the occupied territories, which would eventually affect its work in Gaza, the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem. The legislation will take effect in 90 days.