Jerusalem: Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), Philippe Lazzarini, stated that after Israeli occupation authorities raided and demolished the agency's headquarters in East Jerusalem, the building was set on fire.

According to Qatar News Agency, in a post on X, Lazzarini stated that there are no limits to challenging the United Nations and international law on Palestinian territory. He warned that allowing this unprecedented destruction constitutes the latest assault on the United Nations in ongoing attempts to undermine the status of Palestinian refugees and erase their historical presence in the occupied Palestinian territory.

Lazzarini stressed that the issue of Palestinian refugees should be resolved through a genuine political solution, not through criminal acts. Describing the incident as an "unprecedented attack" on a UN agency and its facilities, the UNRWA chief said it represents a new level of deliberate and blatant challenge to international law, including the privileges and immunities of the United Nations, by Israel.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres had earlier strongly condemned the actions of Israeli occupation authorities aimed at demolishing the UNRWA complex in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood and urged Israel to halt the demolition immediately, calling for the restoration of the UNRWA complex and other agency premises without delay.

On January 20, Israeli occupation forces raided the UNRWA headquarters in East Jerusalem, where bulldozers entered the compound and began demolishing buildings under the observation of legislators and a government official.