14 January 2026
On Monday, 12 January, in a disgraceful move, Israeli security personnel forcibly entered the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA Jerusalem Health Centre, demanding the removal of Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ signage. The Jerusalem Health Centre has been supported over decades by member states, many of whom have visited the premises. Later on the same day, a temporary closure order was issued against the Health Centre, closing it for the next thirty days. It may never open again.
Simultaneously, Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA has received notifications from utility providers of impending severance of electricity and water supplies to multiple facilities across East Jerusalem. These buildings include schools, health centres, and other critical service points.
It is not possible to operate humanitarian services without electricity and water.
The 12 January developments follow the December 2025 amendments made to the anti-Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA Israeli laws. These shameful tactics are part of the relentless campaign by Israeli authorities to unilaterally prevent Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA from executing its Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ General Assembly mandate in occupied East Jerusalem, which does not fall under Israeli sovereignty. The application of Israeli law therein is illegal.
In October 2025, the International Court of Justice ruled that Israel is obliged to facilitate relief provided by Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA. And yet, the present actions represent the very opposite. These amendments, if implemented, will signal the end of Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA¡¯s decades-long operational presence in East Jerusalem.¡±
¡ª Roland Friedrich, Director of Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA Affairs in occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem
ENDs-
Document Type: Press Release, Statement
Document Sources: United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA)-Barrier Monitoring Unit (BMU)
Subject: Assistance, Children, Health, Human rights and international humanitarian law, Humanitarian relief, Jerusalem, Refugees and displaced persons, Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA, Water, human rights violations
Publication Date: 14/01/2026
URL source:
Document Sources: United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA)-Barrier Monitoring Unit (BMU)
Subject: Assistance, Children, Health, Human rights and international humanitarian law, Humanitarian relief, Jerusalem, Refugees and displaced persons, Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA, Water, human rights violations
Publication Date: 14/01/2026
URL source: