Israeli excavators damaged the office of the UN refugee agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA) in the Noor Shams refugee camp in the occupied West Bank on Thursday, the head of the agency said, while Israel denied the accusations.

Philippe Lazzarini, head of UNRWA, told X yesterday that the agency’s office was severely damaged and is now unusable.

For its part, the Israeli army issued a statement rejecting any responsibility for the damage to the building.

“The allegation that the UNRWA offices in Nur Shams were destroyed by IDF (Israeli armed forces) soldiers is false,” the statement stressed.

“Terrorists planted explosives near the UNRWA offices, which were then detonated in an attempt to harm IDF soldiers. Explosives may have caused damage to the building,” the statement added.

On Monday the Israeli parliament adopted laws banning the activities of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees in Israel.

Lawmakers who drafted the bill cited the involvement of some UNRWA members in the October 7, 2023, attack launched by Hamas against Israel and the fact that the agency’s workers are members of either Hamas or other Palestinian armed organizations.

The UN, following an investigation, announced in August that nine UNRWA workers—out of 13,000 working in the Gaza Strip—may have been involved in the October 7 attack and expelled them.

Lazzarini assessed that Israel’s decision to ban the activities of UNRWA sets a “dangerous precedent” which is contrary to the UN Charter and contrary to Israel’s obligations under international law.