Israel Begins Eviction of UNRWA Training Compound in Jerusalem Following Terror Allegations

Israeli police forces raided and began dismantling a United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) training compound in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Kafr Aqab on Tuesday. This action follows Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s directive and a recently passed law banning UNRWA’s operations within Israel. Netanyahu stated, "The State of Israel will not allow an organization whose employees were involved in terror and the October 7 massacre to operate on its territory and will act against it by all means."

UNRWA condemned the raid, reporting that armed vehicles entered the facility and detained twenty staff members present at the site. The agency described the compound as a training center providing workshops and classes to refugees. Concurrently, the Israeli Foreign Ministry announced that the Jerusalem municipality has begun converting the site into an educational center.

This development follows the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee’s approval of legislation aimed at terminating UNRWA’s presence in Israel. The law prohibits UNRWA from maintaining any representation, providing services, or conducting activities on Israeli sovereign land, revokes its diplomatic status, cancels diplomatic visas for its personnel, and denies the agency tax benefits. The bill is expected to proceed to a second and third reading in the Knesset plenary soon. MK Alex Millerovsky urged the Knesset Speaker to expedite the law’s passage to "get rid of UNRWA once and for all."

National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir emphasized that Israeli police are enforcing the law to remove UNRWA, accusing the organization of repeatedly serving as a cover for Hamas and stating it has no right to exist in Israel.

This eviction follows the closure of three UNRWA schools in East Jerusalem in May 2025, after the enactment of the same law. UNRWA reported that police sealed the schools and detained at least one staff member. Roland Friedrich, UNRWA’s West Bank director, described the police presence as heavily armed and noted that 550 children aged six to fifteen were present during the enforcement, calling it a "traumatic experience for young children at immediate risk of losing access to education."