Hamas slams Board of Peace for refusal to work with UNRWA in Gaza

What the report says

Hamas has criticized the US-created Board of Peace after the body said it would not work with UNRWA in Gaza and stated the UN agency would have no role there. In comments reported by Al Jazeera on Saturday, Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem said the position amounted to backing Israel’s stance and appeared aimed at ending UNRWA’s operations and aid work in the enclave.

The Board of Peace said on Friday that it would work only with “trusted partners” and argued that UNRWA did not meet its standards. The article notes, however, that a board official told The Associated Press the group had held several meetings with UNRWA representatives and suggested the agency’s programs could continue if they served Gaza’s residents, while also saying “UNRWA’s days are over.” The board had not listed UNRWA among agencies named at a briefing to the UN General Assembly.

UNRWA, established in 1949, has long provided education and humanitarian services to Palestinian refugees. Palestinians broadly view it as tied to their right of return, while Israel has sought to dismantle it. Philippe Lazzarini, who led the agency until earlier this year, said some Gaza governance figures wanted to keep working with UNRWA and accused the board of failing to meet its responsibilities.

The report also said violence continued in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, with Palestinian health officials and local media reporting more deaths, injuries and Israeli raids on the same day.