Israeli occupation forces stormed and searched the headquarters of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of occupied East Jerusalem on Monday morning.
UNRWA confirmed that the forces raided the compound and confiscated mobile phones from the site’s security guards. The agency stated that a large contingent of forces remained inside, severing communications and leaving the situation unclear.
This morning, Israeli occupation forces stormed the UNRWA headquarters in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of occupied Jerusalem, searching the facility and briefly detaining members of its staff. pic.twitter.com/OhLZ0OaoyB
— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) December 8, 2025
The raid followed the United Nations General Assembly’s overwhelming adoption last Friday of five resolutions concerning Palestine, which included the renewal of UNRWA’s mandate.
The Jerusalem Governorate strongly condemned the incursion, labeling it a blatant violation of international law and a serious assault on the inviolability and dignity of United Nations institutions. In a statement, it asserted that the action constitutes a clear breach of the UN Charter, the conditions of UN membership, and specific UN resolutions—particularly Security Council Resolution 2730 (May 24, 2024), which obligates states to protect UN personnel and facilities. This protection, the Governorate noted, applies directly to UNRWA.
According to the Governorate’s account, a large force stormed the headquarters at dawn, detained security personnel, confiscated their phones, and imposed a complete communications blackout and cordon around the area while conducting extensive searches inside the building.
The statement contextualized the raid as part of a series of attacks following the Israeli government’s enforcement on January 30 of a decision to ban UNRWA operations in East Jerusalem. This decision had already prompted the departure of the agency’s international staff from the city after their permits expired, while local staff were absent from the offices during the raid.
The Jerusalem Governorate reaffirmed that East Jerusalem is occupied territory under international law, and its annexation is unrecognized. It stressed that targeting a UN agency serving refugees represents a grave violation of the international system and UN authority, and constitutes a direct challenge to the recent UN General Assembly vote renewing UNRWA’s mandate.
The Governorate reiterated its support for the International Court of Justice’s advisory opinion, which underscores Israel’s lack of sovereignty over the occupied Palestinian territory, including Jerusalem—an integral part of UNRWA’s operational area. It called on the international community to reject recent Israeli decisions, which it described as tools for entrenching occupation and oppression.
Concluding its statement, the Jerusalem Governorate urged urgent international action to hold Israel accountable as a state that violates international law and to prosecute its leaders for crimes committed against the Palestinian people and their institutions.
Source: Palestinian media (Translated and edited by Al-Manar English Website)
