Armed Israeli forces shut down three United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) schools in the Shuafat refugee camp of occupied East Jerusalem on Thursday, sending hundreds of Palestinian children home and drawing condemnation from international bodies.
According to the UN agency, the closures occurred shortly after school began, with students aged 6 to 15 still in their classrooms when Israeli police entered the buildings. One UNRWA staff member was detained, and closure notices were posted on school walls, prohibiting all educational activity and staff employment.
UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini called the move a “blatant disregard of international law,” asserting that it denied Palestinian children their basic right to education. “UNRWA schools must continue to be open to safeguard an entire generation of children,” he said.
Footage circulating online showed distressed students gathered outside the closed schools. UNRWA said police were deployed to three additional school facilities in East Jerusalem, resulting in full suspension of learning activities in the area.
Israel’s action is linked to its broader ban on UNRWA activities in Jerusalem, citing alleged links to Hamas—claims the agency strongly rejects, stressing its impartiality under a UN General Assembly mandate.
The Palestinian Authority labelled the shutdown a “violation of children’s right to education,” while a number of countries, including the United Kingdom, European Union, Norway, Turkey, Switzerland, and Japan, voiced opposition to the move. “Israel is obliged under international humanitarian law to facilitate the proper working of all institutions devoted to the education of children,” stated the British consulate in Jerusalem.
UNRWA has operated in East Jerusalem since 1950. Israel captured and annexed East Jerusalem in 1980 following the 1967 war, a move not recognised internationally. The area is home to around 390,000 Palestinians and 230,000 Israeli settlers, and remains a flashpoint in the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
