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UNRWA vs. UNHCR: Refugee Definitions & Mandates Compared

A comparative analysis of the UNRWA and UNHCR organizations, examining their refugee definitions, operational mandates, and implications on regional conflicts like the Battle of Jenin. Explore the divergences in approaches towards Palestinian refugees and broader international refugee issues.

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UNRWA vs. UNHCR: Refugee Definitions & Mandates Compared

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  1. “The Refugees” The Tale of Two Organizations: UNRWA vs. UNHCR Dr. Martin Sherman July 2008

  2. Perpetuating the Narrative of “Return” Propagating Enmity towards Israel

  3. Jaffa - on Opening page of the UNRWA Website

  4. “I had hoped that thehorror stories of Jeninwere exaggerated… but I am afraidthese were not exaggeratedand that Jenin camp residents lived through ahuman catastrophethat have few parallels in recent history ” Statement byPeter Hansen, Commissioner-General of UNRWA, 18 April 2002 .

  5. The Battle of Jenin For both Israelis and Palestinians, a deadly battle in West Bank refugee camp has become a potent symbol of their struggle. What really happened? A TIME investigationBy Matt Rees – May 13, 2002 A Time investigation concludes that there was no wanton massacre in Jenin, no deliberate slaughter of Palestinians by Israeli soldiers… According to the U.N., 54 Palestinians are confirmed dead. Human Rights Watch, which in a pub-lished report last week also concluded that no massacre took place…

  6. UNRWA vs.UNHCR Organizational Parameters • Definition of “Refugee” • Mandate • Staffing Policy The UNRWA Anomaly The Ramifications • Allocation of Resources • Links to Terror

  7. UNHCRA person who is outside his or her country of nationality or habitual residence; has a well-founded fear of persecution because of his or her race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion; and is unable or unwilling to avail himself or herself of the protection of that country, or to return there, for fear of persecution. UNRWA any person whose normal place of residence was Palestine during the period 1 June 1946 to 15 May 1948 and who lost both home and means of livelihood as a result of the 1948 conflict. Palestine refugees eligible for UNRWA assistance, are mainly persons who fulfill the above definition and descendants of fathers fulfilling the definition. UNRWA vs.UNHCR UNRWA מול UNHCR Definition: Who Is a “Refugee”?

  8. UNRWA מול UNHCR UNRWA vs.UNHCR Definition: Who Is a “Refugee”? According to the UNHCR Definition, the Number of Refugees Declines over Time According to the UNRWA Definition, the Number of Refugees Balloons over Time

  9. UNRWA is only responsible for providing services to one group of refugees, the Palestine refugees, in its areas of operation. UNHCR is responsible for refugees worldwide. UNRWA is mandated to provide the Palestine refugees with humanitarian assistance…UNRWA has a unique role as it is the only UN agency that reports directly to the UN General Assembly, and whose beneficiary population stems from one nation-group. UNHCR has the mandate to provide international protection to [all] refugees who fall within the scope of its Statute and to seekpermanentsolutions for the problem of refugees by assisting Governments. UNRWA מול UNHCR UNRWA vs.UNHCR The Mandate: The Nature of Operations

  10. UNRWA vs.UNHCR UNRWAmandate [is] strictly limited to the delivery of humanitarian services, and then moved progressively into basic and preparatory education, and health and relief assistance… Issues such as the promotion of resettlement and the resolution of the refugee problem clearly do not fall within this mandate; they are political rather than humanitarian Gina Benevento, Chief, UNRWA Public, Information Office Gaza City UNHCR is mandated to offer refugees three options: Local integration, resettlement in third countries, or return to their home countries. Gina Benevento, Chief, UNRWA Public, Information Office, Gaza City UNRWA מול UNHCR The Mandate: The Nature of Operations Such choices are not feasible in the Palestinian context, since the first two options are unacceptable to the refugees and their host countries, while the third is consistently rejected by the State of Israel… any one of these options must be accepted voluntarily by the refugees under UNHCR ’s care, a principle shared by UNRWA’s mandate. Gina Benevento Chief, UNRWA Public, Information Office, Gaza City

  11. UNRWA vs.UNHCR UNRWA מול UNHCR The Mandate: The Nature of Operations PALESTINIAN MOB ATTACKS POLLSTER By JAMES BENNET Published: July 14, 2003 A mob attacked an eminent Palestinian political scientist today as he prepared to announce a striking finding from a regionwide survey of Palestinian refugees: Only a small minority of them would exercise a ''right of return'' to Israel as part of a peace agreement. In a broad, detailed survey, Dr. Shikaki's researchers questioned 4,500 refugee families living in the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, Jordan and Lebanon…Only 10 percent demanded permanent residence in Israel, a proportion that decreased if the refugees were told that they would have to take Israeli citizenship or that their old homes were gone. Dr. Shikaki said the poll's results showed that refugees were less interested in being nationalist standard-bearers than in living fuller lives. ''Refugees are human beings with needs,'' he said. ''These people want to live their lives.

  12. UNRWA- Interim Conclusion + UNRWA Definition UNRWA Mandate = Conclusion UNRWA is an Organization that Perpetuates the Problem it is Supposed to Deal With

  13. UNRWA employs some 24,324 staff, of whom more than 99 per cent are locally-recruited Palestinians, almost all of them Palestine refugees. UNHCR -On 1 January 2007, the total number of UNHCR posts stood at 5,289. UNRWA vs.UNHCR UNRWA מול UNHCR Staffing Policy

  14. UNRWA vs.UNHCR UNRWA מול UNHCR The Anomaly of UNRWA - Recruitment of Staff from Client Population - Exempt from the normal rules and regulations - The only UN agencywhose beneficiary population stems from one nation-group

  15. UNRWA vs.UNHCR UNRWA מול UNHCR Recruitment of Staff from Client Population UNRWA employs some 24,324 staff, of whom more than 99 per cent are locally-recruited Palestinians, almost all of them Palestine refugees. Of all the problems inherent in UNRWA’s policies, however, the practice of hiring from within its own client population is perhaps the thorniest. Of the approximately 24,000 persons in its employ, all but the roughly 100 “internationals” in executive positions are Palestinian Arabs, the vast majority of whom are themselves refugees… No other UN agency does this; the UNHCR, for example, maintains by design a certain distance from its client base. The reason for this distance is clear: Employers who share the situation of their clients are vulnerable to conflicts of interest. UNRWA staff naturally share the passions and perceptions of their fellow refugees, and can easily be led to act on them inappropriately. In some cases, this means turning a blind eye to beneficiaries of UNRWA services engaged in terrorism; in others, it means outright involvement in terrorist activity itself. Arlene Kushner, "The UN’s Palestinian Refugee Problem", Azure, Autumn 5766 / 2005, No. 22

  16. UNRWA vs.UNHCR UNRWA מול UNHCR Exempt from the normal rules and regulations From the UNRWA Website Why do Palestinian refugees not come under the mandate of UNHCR? Palestine refugees were specifically and intentionally excluded from the international refugee law regime established by the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and the 1967 Protocol thereto, as long as the Palestine refugees receive assistance from UNRWA. UNHCR was established by UN General Assembly Resolution 319 (IV) of 3 December 1949 and is guided by the 1951 Convention. The Statute of UNHCR was adopted by the General Assembly in 1950 as an annex to Resolution 428 (V) of 14 December 1950. UNHCR, however, has always supported Palestine refugees insofar as its constitution permits.

  17. UNRWA vs.UNHCR UNRWA מול UNHCR The only UN agency whose beneficiary population stems from one nation-group From the UNRWA Website What is the difference between UNRWA and UNHCR? UNRWA is only responsible for providing services to one group of refugees, the Palestine refugees, in its areas of operation. UNHCR is responsible for refugees worldwide. UNRWA is mandated to provide the Palestine refugees with humanitarian assistance, whereas UNHCR has the mandate to provide international protection to refugees who fall within the scope of its Statute and to seek permanent solutions for the problem of refugees by assisting Governments. UNRWA has a unique role as it is the only UN agency that reports directly to the UN General Assembly, and whose beneficiary population stems from one nation-group.

  18. UNRWA vs.UNHCR UNRWA מול UNHCR The Ramifications • Allocation of Resources • Links to Terror

  19. UNRWA מול UNHCR UNRWA vs.UNHCR Allocation of Resources Budgets What is UNRWA’s budget? UNRWA’s regular cash and in-kind budget for 2007 is US$ 505 million, although expenditure is likely to be less because of forecast shortfalls in donation income. Due to the humanitarian crisis in the occupied Palestinian territory caused by the conflict and Israeli closures, UNRWA has launched repeated emergency appeals for emergency food, employment and cash assistance. In 2007 the Agency is asking for an additional $246 million to cover these emergency needs. The Agency’s largest donors in 2006 were the European Commission, the United States, Sweden, Canada and the United Kingdom. As of 30 November 2007, the Agency's largest contribu-tors are the United States, the European Com-mission, Sweden, the Norway and United Kingdom.

  20. Field ofOperations OfficialCamps Registeredfamiliesin camps RegisteredRefugeesin Camps RegisteredRefugees Jordan 10 63,591 328,076 1,858,362 Lebanon 12 50,806 215,890 408,438 Syria 9 26,645 119,055 442,363 West Bank 19 39,895 186,479 722,302 Gaza Strip 8 93,074 478,272 1,016,964 Agency total 58 274,011 1,327,772 4,448,429 Figures as of 31 December 2006 STATISTICS

  21. Budget – US$500 Mill Budget – US$1.1 Bill UNRWA vs.UNHCR UNRWA מול UNHCR Budget vs.Client population Client Population – Approx 4.5 Mill. Client Population – over 20 Mill.

  22. Approx. 110$ Budget per Person in Care Appox. 180 Client Population per Staff Member Approx 55 $ Budget per Person in Care Approx4000 Client Population per Staff Member UNRWA vs.UNHCR UNRWA מול UNHCR Allocation of Resources

  23. UNRWA vs.UNHCR Allocation of Resources The 200,000 refugees by the global definition make up less than 5% of the 4.25 million by the UNRWA definition. By international standards, the other 95% are not refugees at all. By falsely attaching a refugee status to these Palestinians who never fled anywhere, UNRWA condemns a creative and entrepreneurial people to lives of exclusion, self-pity and nihilism. The UN's Palestinian refugee trap. Daniel Pipes National Post, August 21, 2003

  24. According to Authoritative Estimates : Applying the Universal UNHCR Criterion to the Palestinian Case Would Reduce UNRWA Client Population from… … Approx. 4.5 Mill to Approx. 200,000 UNRWA vs.UNHCR Mis- Allocation of Resources In other words: UNRWA generates a, massive politically-motivated diversion of resources in favor of the Palestinians… at the expense all other refugees on the face of the globe

  25. UNRWA vs.UNHCR UNRWA מול UNHCR Links to Terror • What is broadly referred to as “UNRWA involvement with terrorism” involves a variety of different and sometimes overlapping aspects: • the use of UNRWA facilities by terrorists • terrorists who are in the employ of UNRWA • refugees on the rolls of UNRWA and eligible for • assistance who have terrorist connections • Arlene Kushner. UNRWA. The United Nations Relief and • Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East. LINKS TO TERRORISM, 2004

  26. Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center at the Center for Special Studies (C.S.S) Special Information Paper December 2002 Terrorist activists confess that UNRWA facilities and vehicles served to carry out terrorist activity Alaa Muhammad Ali Hassan, a “Tanzim” activist from Nablus, who was arrested in February 2002, confessed during his interrogation that he had carried out asniper shootingfrom the school run byUNRWAin theal-Ayn refugee camp near Nablus. He also told his interrogators thatbombs intended for terrorist attackswere beingmanufactured inside that school’s facilities.

  27. Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center at the Center for Special Studies (C.S.S) Special Information Paper December 2002 Nidal Abd al-Fattah Abdallah Nazzal, a Hamas activist from Qalqilya, was arrested in August 2002. Nidal, an ambulance driver employed byUNRWA, confessed during his interrogation that he had transported weapons and explosives in anUNRWAambulance to terrorists, and that he had taken advantage of the freedom of movement he enjoyed to transmit messages among Hamas activists in various Palestinian towns. Terrorist activists confess that UNRWA facilities and vehicles served to carry out terrorist activity

  28. Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center at the Center for Special Studies (C.S.S) Special Information Paper December 2002 Nahd Rashid Ahmad Atallah,a senior official of theUNRWAagency in the Gaza Strip who was in charge of distributing the financial aid to the refugees, was arrested in August 2002. He told his interrogators that during the years 1990 through 1993, in his capacity asUNRWAofficial, he had granted support to families of wanted terrorists, on behalf of Fatah and the “Popular Front”. He also revealed that during the months June and July 2002, he had usedhis car, an UNRWAcar, for the transportation of armed members of the “Popular Resistance Committees” who were on their way to carry out a sniper attack against Israeli troops posted at the Karni passage, and a missile attack against Jewish settlements in the Northern part of the Gaza Strip. In addition to these, Nahd had used anUNRWAcar to transport a 12 kg explosive charge for his brother-in-law, a militant member of the “Popular Resistance Committees” a militant faction of the Fatah movement, active mainly in the Gaza Strip. Terrorist activists confess that UNRWA facilities and vehicles served to carry out terrorist activity

  29. Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center at the Center for Special Studies (C.S.S) Special Information Paper December 2002 Terrorist activists confess that UNRWA facilities and vehicles served to carry out terrorist activity Nahd Atallahexplained to his interrogators that he hadused anUNRWA carfor the transportation of terrorists on their way to terrorist attacks, because acar that belongs to the United Nationsisnot subject to inspections by the Israeli army, and as such enjoysfreedom of movement on the roads. This statement bluntly demonstrates the manner in which terrorist activists and terrorist organizations exploit the concessions granted by the Israeli security forces toUNRWAvehicles because of humanitarian motives and the wish to maintain good relations with the United Nations’ representatives that operate in the Palestinian territories.

  30. Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center at the Center for Special Studies (C.S.S) Special Information Paper December 2002 Radical Islamic terrorist organizations exert increased influence on UNRWA workers During the trade union elections held amongUNRWAworkersin the Palestinian territories in June 1999, supporters of theHamasmovement, an organization actively involved in murderous terrorist attacks against civilian population centers in Israel, obtained the large majority of the votes: theHamas movementwon no less than 6 seatsonUNRWAworkers’ executive council, whereas the Fatah supporters had to content themselves with 3 seats. • Hamas’ most overwhelming victory was recorded at the elections of the UNRWA-employed teachers’ union - in which the Hamas movement won all 11 seats. The true nature of the elected teachers was well reflected in the speech delivered on 6 July 2001 by the UNRWA teachers’ delegate, during a conference held by the Hamas movement at the Jabalya refugee camp in the Gaza Strip.  Suheil al-Hindi, the teachers’ delegate, praised in his speech the students who joined the Hamas movement and carried out suicide attacks against Israel. After reading the names of student suicide bombers, al-Hindi stated that “the road to Palestine passes through the blood of martyrs (shuhada)”, and that “these martyrs were writing history with their torn flesh and bodies”.

  31. UNRWA has failed the Palestinian refugees. This failure is the product of half a century of overwhelming politicization of a humanitarian effort. Fortunately, another UN agency exists to deal with the problem of refugees, one with a successful record of resolving their problems around the world. Those nations interested in finding a genuine, viable solution to the Palestinian refugee problem–a sine qua non for peace in the Middle East–should be encouraged to support the end of UNRWA’s regime and the application of the policies of the UNHCR to the Palestinian refugee issue Arlene Kushner, "The UN’s Palestinian Refugee Problem", Azure, Autumn 5766 / 2005, No. 22

  32. Thank You for Your Attention

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