Vol. 559 No. 5
74 Mr. Broughan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will press for a UN team to visit and report on the death and injuries, and obstructions placed in the way of medical relief, in Jenin; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26515/02]
The UN has a permanent presence in Jenin in the form of UNRWA, the UN agency charged with providing relief and assistance to Palestinian refugees. The reports of this agency make very disturbing reading and suggest a pattern of interference with the activities of the UN and other relief and medical agencies in Jenin and other refugee camps. It will be recalled that an international official of UNRWA, Mr. Ian Hooke, was recently killed by Israeli forces during an incursion into the Jenin refugee camp.
The issue of UN access and the safety of UNRWA personnel has been raised with the Israeli Government by senior representatives of the United Nations and by the European Union. Regrettably, these representations appear to have had little effect. Ireland has supported calls for Israeli withdrawal from areas such as Jenin in the Security Council of the United Nations. On 29 September last I issued a statement calling on Israel to conduct itself in a manner fully consistent with international humanitarian law, including the Fourth Geneva Convention which imposes an obligation to protect civilians. The Commissioner General of the UNRWA, Mr. Peter Hansen, visited Dublin in October and was received by the Minister of State at my Department with special responsibility for overseas development and human rights, Deputy Kitt. They discussed Ireland's current programme of assistance to UNRWA and ways in which we could better assist the important work of the organisation, as well as political developments in the area.
