On World Refugee Day, June 20, Israel’s Foreign Ministry made clear that when it comes to Palestinian refugees, the UN has spent 77 years doing the opposite — and has no intention of stopping.
“Today is World Refugee Day,” the Israeli Foreign Ministry posted on X. “A day to remember that refugee agencies are supposed to reduce the number of refugees. Unless you’re @UNRWA. Then somehow the number only goes up.”
The UN has never acknowledged the more than 850,000 Jews who either fled persecution or were expelled from Arab countries after the establishment of Israel in 1948.
AFSI Insight
UNRWA has institutionalized and perpetuated the Palestinian (a people who don’t exist) refugee issue rather than resolving it. UNRWA’s unique definition of refugee status—allowing it to be inherited across generations—has transformed what began as a temporary humanitarian problem into a permanent political weapon (the reason for their invention) against Israel.
By preserving refugee status indefinitely, UNRWA fuels unrealistic expectations of a “right of return,” obstructs peace efforts, and sustains anti-Israel narratives. Recent revelations regarding UNRWA personnel and alleged ties to terrorist organizations reinforce the case for dismantling or fundamentally restructuring the agency.
Genuine humanitarian solutions require helping people build permanent lives where they reside, not maintaining millions of descendants in perpetual refugee status as a political tool against the Jewish state. It is urgent that UNRWA be replaced with mechanisms that promote resettlement, integration, and accountability rather than the endless expansion of the (fabricated) refugee problem.