This blog is now closed, you can read more on this story here. While Unrwa said on Thursday that it would continue working in Gaza and the West Bank for as long as possible, it added it had received no communications from Israel on how the ban would be implemented β most crucially over the delivery of aid to Gaza.
The ban does apply, however, to Israeli-annexed East Jerusalem , where Unrwa has a field headquarters for its operations in the West Bank. About 25 international staff left Israel on Wednesday after Israel had refused to issue visas or extend existing ones. We have not received any instructions from Israel how the ban will be enforced beyond being told to vacate.
In a statement on Thursday morning, the Spanish foreign ministry called for Israel to drop its ban on Unrwa , saying the move risked endangering both lives and the ceasefire. Spain expresses its deepest concern about the impact that this decision will have on the humanitarian situation in Gaza and the rest of the Occupied Palestinian Territories, jeopardising the ceasefire that began on January Unrwa is essential and irreplaceable for the lives of the 6 million refugees to whom it provides essential services, and for regional stability, and Spain firmly supports its work.
At the end of May last year, Spain joined Ireland and Norway in officially recognising a Palestinian state. If you missed it earlier, we posted on the who else is expected to be released by Hamas and Israel today.
There are two other Israelis expected to be freed on Thursday: Arbel Yehoud , 29, and Gadi Moses , an year-old man. There has been no official confirmation yet of the identities of the Thai nationals who will be released by Hamas. Among the people expected to be released from prisons in Israel, is Zakaria Zubeidi β a prominent former militant leader and theater director who took part in a dramatic jailbreak in before being rearrested days later.
