UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Tuesday condemned Israel’s evacuation and takeover of a UNRWA vocational training center in eastern Jerusalem, warning that the move would disrupt educational opportunities for young people.
“The Secretary-General is greatly alarmed at this development, as it will deprive young people of the vocational education they were receiving," Guterres’ spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.
Dujarric emphasized that the facility, like other UNRWA properties, is protected under the UN’s legal status. The training center “and other UNRWA premises are premises of the United Nations. They are inviolable and immune from any form of interference."
The statement followed an operation by the IDF, Israel Police and Jerusalem Municipality to evacuate the UNRWA compound in Kafr Aqab, in the northern part of the capital.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir welcomed the operation, saying Israeli authorities were enforcing legislation against the agency.
“This morning, Israel Police forces are working with the relevant authorities to enforce the law and remove UNRWA from the premises. An organization whose employees were involved in terrorism and that repeatedly served as a cover for Hamas has no right to exist for even one more second, and has no place in Jerusalem or the State of Israel," he stated.
“My policy is clear: Sovereignty is not something you talk about - it is something you exercise. The Israel Police will continue to act resolutely to enforce the law, strengthen governance and make it clear that Jerusalem is the capital of the State of Israel, and so it will remain. Anyone who establishes terrorist nests there will be removed," Ben Gvir added.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also addressed the evacuation, saying it followed legislation passed by the Knesset and his directive.
"In accordance with my directive and following the law we passed, the evacuation of the UNRWA compound in Kafr Aqab, Jerusalem, began today. The State of Israel will not allow an organization whose employees were complicit in terrorism and the October 7 massacre to operate within its territory, and will act against it by all means at its disposal."
UNRWA has faced sustained Israeli criticism over ties between its employees and the Hamas terrorist organization. The criticism intensified in 2024 after Israel presented evidence that UNRWA personnel had participated in the October 7, 2023 attack.
The UN subsequently established a review group headed by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna to examine the allegations. Its report identified "neutrality-related issues" within UNRWA, while also stating that Israel had not provided evidence supporting claims that a significant number of agency employees belonged to terrorist organizations.
In October 2024, the Knesset approved legislation prohibiting UNRWA from operating in Israel and preventing Israeli officials from maintaining contact with the agency. The legislation was later amended to prohibit the provision of electricity and water to UNRWA facilities.
Guterres has upped his criticism of Israel since the October 7 Hamas attack. Several weeks afterward, he said the attack “did not happen in a vacuum" and appeared to blame Israel, remarks that drew widespread condemnation. He subsequently claimed his comments had been misunderstood and reiterated that he had condemned Hamas.
Tensions between Israel and Guterres's office increased further in May after the UN chief placed Israeli entities on a blacklist concerning sexual violence in conflict zones. Israel’s UN ambassador, Danny Danon, responded by announcing that Israel would freeze relations with the Secretary-General’s office.
"We are done with this UN Secretary-General. Guterres has put Israel on the same blacklist along with Hamas, ISIS and the most depraved terrorist organizations in the world. This is a moral disgrace that proves that Guterres has lost all credibility," Danon stated at the time.