Netanyahu Orders UNRWA Jerusalem Training Center Dismantled, Citing Oct. 7 Involvement

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Tuesday, August 25, 2026 that he had ordered the dismantlement of a UNRWA vocational training center in the Kafr Aqab area of East Jerusalem, following National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir's earlier announcement of the move. Netanyahu said Israel 'will not allow an organization whose employees were involved in terrorism and in the October 7 massacre to operate on its territory, and will take action against it using every means at its disposal,' invoking the 2024 Israeli law banning UNRWA from operating on Israeli territory. Israeli officials have repeatedly accused a portion of UNRWA staff of participating in the October 7 attack; a UN internal investigation previously found 9 of 19 investigated employees may have been involved and terminated them, while a separate review found insufficient evidence for Israel's broader claims about the agency's workforce. UNRWA denies the accusations. Ben Gvir said police were working to clear the 82-dunam site, which the Jerusalem municipality has approved for a road and 'educational complex'; UNRWA says Jordan granted it the land in 1952 and warned the takeover would violate UN facilities' legal protections.