Cairo, Dec. 31 (Petra) - President of the Arab Parliament Mohammad bin Ahmed Al-Yamahi strongly condemned the Israeli Knesset’s approval of a decision to cut water and electricity to the offices of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) in the city of Jerusalem, stressing that the decision constitutes a fully fledged international crime and a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law.

In a statement issued by the Arab Parliament, Al-Yamahi said targeting UNRWA comes as part of a comprehensive war waged by the occupation against the international and humanitarian system, through systematic incitement campaigns and arbitrary decisions, including revoking the operating licenses of international and humanitarian organizations that play a vital role in protecting civilians in the Gaza Strip and falsely accusing them of terrorism and antisemitism.

He noted that the decision represents an overt attempt to criminalize humanitarian work, deepen the humanitarian catastrophe, and impose systematic starvation on Palestinian civilians, in blatant violation of the Geneva Conventions, and an attempt to silence witnesses to its crimes. He stressed that such practices pose a serious threat to the international humanitarian system as a whole.

The Arab Parliament president called on the United Nations and the international community to take urgent and decisive measures to halt these ongoing violations, ensure full protection for UNRWA and all humanitarian organizations and the continuation of their work, and provide international protection for the Palestinian people. He renewed his call on international and regional parliaments to freeze the membership of the Israeli Knesset in the Inter-Parliamentary Union.

//Petra// AF