Press Releases

On 2 March 2025, BADIL hosted a webinar titled: “States’ Obligations to Protect UNRWA: What is Required and by Whom?” The discussion examined the long-standing Israeli-led campaign to dismantle UNRWA as a key component of Israel’s broader strategy to erase the Palestinian refugee issue and deny their right of return.

Roland Friedrich, Director of UNRWA’s West Bank Field Office, addressed the impact of recent Israeli legislation banning UNRWA, highlighting how these actions undermine the Agency’s mandate and operations across its areas of service. Ala Srouji, Director of Al Awda Center in Tulkarem Refugee Camp, discussed the severe effects of Israel’s suppression campaign, “Operation Iron Wall,” on Palestinian refugees and internally displaced persons, particularly their access to humanitarian aid in refugee camps in the northern West Bank. Lubnah Shomali, BADIL’s Advocacy Manager, analyzed the political consequences of dismantling UNRWA and exposed states’ failure to uphold their international obligations in providing protection for Palestinian refugees. She also reflected on the broader limitations of the multilateral system in addressing these protection gaps.

The 1.5-hour webinar was moderated by Rania Muhareb, a postdoctoral fellow at the Palestinian Program for Health and Human Rights at the FXB Center for Health and Human Rights at Harvard University.

You can find the recording, with English and Arabic interpretation, here>>: