UN agency closes East Jerusalem HQ after arson attack by ‘Israeli extremists’ Unrwa chief says compound has faced a number of attacks, with lives of UN staff at serious risk

Philippe Lazzarini said the fire caused ‘extensive damage’ but there were no casualties. Photograph: Fabrice Coffrini/AFP/Getty Images

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees has temporarily closed its East Jerusalem headquarters after weeks of attacks.

“This evening, Israeli residents set fire twice to the perimeter of the Unrwa headquarters in occupied East Jerusalem,” the head of the agency, Philippe Lazzarini, tweeted, lamenting that it was the second attack on the compound within days.

“A crowd accompanied by armed men were witnessed outside the compound chanting ‘Burn down the United Nations’.”

Staff from the Unrwa and other UN agencies were on the compound, which has petrol and diesel stations for a fleet of UN cars.

“While there were no casualties among our staff, the fire caused extensive damage to the outdoor areas,” Lazzarini said, adding that Unrwa staff had put out the fire.

The attack came after two months of “Israeli extremists staging protests outside the Unrwa compound”, he said. One protest this week “became violent when demonstrators threw stones at UN staff and at the buildings of the compound”.

In recent months, hundreds of Israeli settlers and rightwing activists have protested by blocking the entrances of the UN agency and calling for its closure.... READ MORE https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/article/2024/may/09/unrwa-jerusalem-hq-closed-after-israeli-extremist-arson-attack

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