Likud MK Barkat said to revive his bill to oust UNRWA from East Jerusalem

Against the backdrop of numerous countries suspending funds for the UN agency for Palestinian refugees and their descendants, Likud MK Nir Barkat has reportedly revived his years-long plan to expel UNRWA from the capital and have the municipality provide education, health, welfare and sanitation services in its place.

Barkat, who served as mayor of Jerusalem until 2018, has repeatedly accused UNRWA over the past few years of failing those under its purview and instead inciting terror activity.

He originally unveiled his plan when he was ending his term as mayor and joining national politics, and he tried to advance legislation on the matter in the previous Knesset, when Likud was in the opposition.

Now, according to the Israel Hayom daily, Barkat and several other lawmakers have filed the bill again, hoping to take advantage of the current momentum against UNRWA. The report says the bill will be discussed by the Knesset in an expedited process ahead of a preliminary reading in the plenum.

The bill would bar UNRWA from holding any direct or indirect activities or providing any service in Israeli sovereign areas. This includes East Jerusalem, which was annexed in 1980 in a move not recognized by most of the international community.