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United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has condemned Israeli authorities’ entry into a UNRWA vocational training centre in occupied East Jerusalem.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, delivered by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesman for the UN Secretary-General, Guterres said Israeli security forces and other authorities entered the UNRWA Kalandia Training Centre and carried out unauthorised works despite UNRWA staff being present.
“The Secretary-General condemns in the strongest terms today’s actions by the Israeli authorities, including security forces, to unlawfully enter and remain on the UNRWA Kalandia Training Centre in occupied East Jerusalem and carry out unauthorized works in those premises,” the statement said.
Guterres said he was “greatly alarmed” by the development, warning that the action could deprive young people of vocational education they had been receiving at the centre.
The Kalandia facility has provided vocational education and pathways to employment for thousands of Palestine refugees for more than 70 years.
The UN chief said Tuesday’s incident was the fifth unauthorised entry by Israeli authorities into the centre since May, placing it within what he described as a wider pattern of interference with UNRWA facilities in occupied East Jerusalem.
He also cited the seizure and demolition of the UNRWA compound in Sheikh Jarrah and the disruption of water and electricity services to several UNRWA facilities.
“These actions take place in the context of domestic legislation which significantly impedes UNRWA from fulfilling the mandate in the Occupied Palestine Territory entrusted to it by the General Assembly,” Guterres said, reiterating his call for the repeal of the legislation.
The Secretary-General stressed that the Kalandia Training Centre, like other UNRWA facilities, is United Nations property and therefore protected from interference.
“The Kalandia Training Centre and other UNRWA premises are premises of the United Nations. They are inviolable and immune from any form of interference,” he said.
Guterres said the actions were “wholly unacceptable” and inconsistent with Israel’s obligations under international law, including the UN Charter and the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations.
He also referred to an advisory opinion issued by the International Court of Justice on October 22, 2025, saying the court had confirmed that Israel must respect the inviolability of UN premises in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and refrain from interfering with their functions.
Guterres called on the Israeli government to immediately stop interfering with UNRWA facilities and to vacate and restore the affected premises.
He further urged Israel to “protect those premises from further interference or damage.”
