Israeli forces seize UNRWA training centre in East Jerusalem

Israeli security forces entered an UNRWA training centre in the Kafr Aqab neighbourhood of East Jerusalem on Tuesday, deploying four armoured vehicles and 50 personnel before raising an Israeli flag over the site. According to UNRWA, the facility is its oldest vocational school, providing free education to hundreds of Palestinian refugees annually. Palestinian media reported that approximately 40 people were detained and questioned, with demolition work beginning on parts of the site. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that Israel would not permit an organisation whose employees were allegedly complicit in the October 7, 2023, attacks to operate within its territory. UNRWA condemned the incursion as unacceptable and deeply concerning, noting it occurred without United Nations authorisation. Separately, in the occupied West Bank, Israeli MP Zvi Sukkot used a sledgehammer to destroy a monument in the village of Madama, claiming it commemorated individuals responsible for attacks on Jews. The Prime Minister's office condemned the act, stating that public figures taking the law into their own hands hinders military operations. Meanwhile, violence continues to surge in the West Bank, with reports of clashes between settlers and left-wing activists near Bethlehem, an incident that resulted in injuries to three AFP journalists.