The Israeli government has approved plans to build a Defence Ministry complex on the former site of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, near Ammunition Hill in East Jerusalem.
The complex will include a new Israeli military museum, a recruitment office and office for the defence minister.
In a joint statement, Israel’s Defence Ministry and the Jerusalem municipality said the complex would be built on a 36-dunam (nine-acre) site as part of efforts to strengthen the defence establishment’s presence in Jerusalem.
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz described the move as “a decision of sovereignty, Zionism and security”. He accused UNRWA of links to Hamas and said the new institutions would replace what he called “the machinery of terror and incitement against Israel”.
Israel began demolishing the former UNRWA headquarters in January after years of measures against the agency, which Israel has accused of links to Hamas and involvement in militant activities, including the October 7, 2023 attacks.
The Defence Ministry and Jerusalem municipality signed an agreement in December to establish the new defence headquarters in the city and relocate military colleges to Jerusalem.
Philippe Lazzarini, head of UNRWA, described the destruction of the headquarters as “a new level of open and deliberate defiance of international law” by Israel.
The demolition of the UNRWA compound is the latest move by Israel against the organisation since the start of the Gaza war. UNRWA's schools, health centres and refugee camps have supported generations of Palestinian refugees since the 1948 war surrounding the creation of Israel.
In late 2024, Israel banned UNRWA from operating in territory under its control, a decision that was widely criticised in the international community, including by many of Israel’s close allies. The agency is considered essential to supporting Palestinians and dealing with the humanitarian catastrophe of the Gaza war.
Israel has long accused UNRWA of tolerating anti-Semitic content in school curriculums, maintaining close links with Hamas and perpetuating the refugee status of Palestinians – claims the agency has repeatedly denied.
