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Board of Peace: UNRWA is not part of the new Gaza
The agency says it cannot distribute enough food, flour and shelter supplies for hundreds of thousands as Israeli restrictions tighten and aid groups face new limits.
On Wednesday, the US-led Board of Peace declared that the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees "has no place" in Gaza's future, urging nations to redirect funding to their US-led body instead.
Since March 2025, an Israeli ban has effectively barred UNRWA from directly bringing staff and aid into the strip, severely curtailing operations for the 2.2 million population dependent on the agency for essential services.
A June report by the UN humanitarian office, OCHA, described Gaza as "volatile and insecure," with the population confined to "shrinking and overcrowded spaces where essential services are overstretched" and delayed by congestion at the Kerem Shalom crossing.
The Board of Peace plans to launch "Hamas-free humanitarian zones" in Tel Sultan, near Rafah, within weeks, policed by the International Stabilisation Force equipped with "non-lethal weapons."
Rejecting the BoP's stance, the Palestinian Authority affirmed that UNRWA remains "an indispensable lifeline," while the Israeli High Court previously intervened to halt bans on 37 international aid groups.