Germany condemns the escalation of violent protests against UNRWA in East Jerusalem

“Israel must ensure the protection of UN facilities and personnel in the occupied Palestinian territories,” the German Foreign Ministry wrote on the X social network.

“The UN must be able to fulfill its important mandate in Gaza [Ruože]the West Bank and East Jerusalem,” the statement said.

Earlier, UNRWA announced the temporary closure of its headquarters in East Jerusalem after its compound was set on fire on Thursday in weeks of repeated attacks.

URNWA head Philippe Lazzarini announced the temporary closure of the agency’s headquarters in East Jerusalem after its compound was set on fire in weeks of repeated attacks on Thursday.

He said there were no casualties, but extensive damage was done to the outer area.

He indicated that the fire was caused against the backdrop of “protests by Israeli extremists at the UNRWA compound” that have been going on for two months. Mr. Lazzarini added that stones were thrown at workers and buildings at the complex during a protest earlier this week.

The Palestinian Authority, Jordan and Saudi Arabia condemned Thursday’s incident.

Germany is one of the countries that strongly supports Israel after the attack by the Islamist group Hamas last October.

But as the war in Gaza continues for more than seven months, Berlin is increasingly critical of the situation and is calling for more humanitarian aid to enter the war-torn Palestinian enclave.

Founded in 1949, UNRWA is currently under scrutiny after Israel accused about ten of its staff of involvement in the October 7 Hamas attack in southern Israel.

Several countries have suspended aid, although the UN says Israel has not provided any evidence to support the allegations.

An independent review of UNRWA led by former French foreign minister Catherine Colonna identified several “problems with neutrality”. She added that Israel has yet to provide evidence to support the allegations.

The war between Israel and Hamas followed an Oct. 7 attack by Palestinian militants in southern Israel that killed 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to official figures.

In the attack, Hamas militants took about 250 hostages, 128 of whom Israel says remain in the Gaza Strip, including 36 hostages who died.

After promising to destroy Hamas, Israel launched a massive military offensive. The Health Ministry of the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip said at least 34,904 people, mostly women and children, had been killed during the war in the territory.