Date: 27 July 2026
Raid on Qalandia Training Centre Constitutes a Grave Violation of UN Agreements and Forms Part of Israel's Plan to Revoke UNRWA's Mandate and Liquidate the Palestine Refugee Issue
================================================================================
The Department of Refugee Affairs of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) on Monday condemned the Israeli occupation forces, supported by personnel from the so-called "Jerusalem Municipality," for storming the Qalandia Vocational Training Centre of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in occupied East Jerusalem for the second time in less than a month, and detaining dozens of students and staff inside the facility.
In a press statement issued today, the Department warned of the seriousness of this systematic escalation by the occupation against Jerusalem and its institutions, stressing that the raid on the internationally protected Qalandia Training Centre constitutes a crime and a flagrant violation of United Nations agreements. It stated that the raid is part of Israel's comprehensive plan to revoke UNRWA's mandate, eliminate the Palestine refugee issue, and impose new Judaization measures in the occupied capital.
The Department explained that targeting the Qalandia Vocational Training Centre, established in 1952 as the oldest UNRWA vocational training centre in Palestine and a living witness to the Palestine refugee issue, from which thousands of Palestine refugees have graduated over the past seven decades, constitutes a direct attack on the national and social identity of Palestine refugees. It described the move as a desperate attempt to deprive hundreds of students from refugee camps and the most impoverished communities of their fundamental right to free education and vocational training guaranteed under UNRWA's international mandate.
The Department added that the systematic Israeli attacks against the Qalandia Training Centre throughout 2026 have not been limited to raiding the premises and detaining students and teachers. They have also included repeated military incursions, ongoing threats of confiscation, the complete disconnection of electricity to the facility, and the advancement of the dangerous Judaization scheme No. (1421205) promoted by the Israeli occupation municipality to establish a so-called "educational complex" on the land of the Qalandia Vocational Training Centre. It stressed that these practices constitute a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law and the privileges and immunities accorded to United Nations institutions.
The Department further explained that these measures are intrinsically linked to the invalid legislation passed by the Israeli Knesset aimed at banning UNRWA's operations and revoking its legal status, in blatant violation of the 1946 Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations. It stressed that international legitimacy resolutions and the International Court of Justice have reaffirmed that East Jerusalem is occupied territory over which the occupying Power has no sovereignty and therefore has no legal right to obstruct the work of international institutions operating there.
The Department called on the international community and the Secretary-General of the United Nations to intervene immediately to curb the occupation's arrogance and to provide comprehensive international protection for UNRWA's facilities, personnel, and the Palestine refugees benefiting from its services. It also stressed the need to compel the occupying Power to implement international legitimacy resolutions and the binding advisory opinion issued by the International Court of Justice in October 2025.
In the conclusion of its statement, the Department reaffirmed the steadfast position of the Palestinian leadership and the Palestine Liberation Organization rejecting any attempt to undermine UNRWA's status or mandate. It reiterated its commitment to preserving the Agency as a living political and legal witness to the Palestine refugee issue until Palestine refugees attain their legitimate and just rights to return and compensation in accordance with United Nations General Assembly Resolution 194.
