U.N. Palestinian Aid Agency Says Israeli Police 'Forcibly Entered' Compound In Jerusalem
HuffPost
The raid was the latest action in Israel's campaign against the agency.
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli police forcibly entered the compound of the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees in East Jerusalem early Monday, escalating a campaign against an organization that has been banned from operating on Israeli territory.
The U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East, or UNRWA, said in a statement that “sizeable numbers” of Israeli forces including police on motorcycles, trucks and forklifts entered the compound in the Palestinian neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah and cut communications to the compound.
“The unauthorized and forceful entry by Israeli security forces is an unacceptable violation of UNRWA’s privileges and immunities as a U.N. agency,” the agency said.
Photos taken by an Associated Press photographer show police cars on the street and an Israeli flag planted on the compound’s roof. Photos provided by UNRWA staff show a group of Israeli police officers inside the compound.
Police said in a statement they entered for a “debt-collection procedure” spearheaded by Jerusalem’s municipal government, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
