By Beyza Binnur Donmez
MUNICH (AA) - The head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees warned on Friday that humanitarian conditions in Gaza remain dire and political and operational pressure on his organization is intensifying, while violence and settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank risk further undermining prospects for peace.
Speaking to Anadolu on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference, UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said people in Gaza continue to live in survival mode despite ongoing aid efforts.
'It's true that the situation in Gaza is still desperate, that beside food, people lack almost everything and are still in a survival mode. It's a daily struggle for the people in Gaza,' he said.
He stressed that beyond emergency relief, maintaining basic public services in the war-battered enclave is critical, particularly education.
'When it comes to an agency like UNRWA, it is absolutely key that we continue to provide public health services, that we continue to provide education, primary, secondary,' he said. 'I think education has to become a top priority for the international community, because the children have been out of school for more than two years.'
Calling schooling essential for long-term stability, he described education as 'a key for a better future' for the Palestinians.
Lazzarini said the agency itself is facing mounting constraints, including political and legal challenges.
- UNRWA under 'intense pressure'
Stressing that the agency is 'under intense pressure,' Lazzarini said: 'We have seen outrageous violation of international law. We have seen the destruction which is symbolic, but while it has been very violent, of the headquarters in occupied East Jerusalem, which also is perceived as a desire to annihilate any memory of the Palestinian refugee identity in East Jerusalem.'
He added that there is 'political pressure to get rid of the agency, because the main political motivation is to strip the Palestinian from the refugee status.'
Despite this, he said UNRWA, which Israel banned from operating starting January 2025, is determined to continue operating.
'We have to push back and focusing all our efforts to make sure that we continue to have the space so that we can deliver for the people in Gaza,' he said.
Looking ahead, he urged that needs of Palestinians remain central in any post-war planning.
'It is time that in any, I would say, discussion about the future of Gaza, or future peace plan that will put the interest of the Gaza, the interest of the Palestinian, at the center of any of our decisions.'
- 'Silent war' in West Bank
Turning to the West Bank, Lazzarini warned that rising settlement activity and violence are being overlooked amid the focus on Gaza.
'The West Bank is a silent war which has been overshadowed by Gaza,' he said.
He lamented the acceleration of illegal settlement activities, as well as the increase of settler violence.
'It has been unabated,' he said, describing the situation as 'total impunity.'
'People are living in an atmosphere ... of fear, and it is time that our attention also we brought into the West Bank before it is too late, before the situation has completely undermined the future of a two-state solution.'