Within the UN, there are no other organs that can perform UNRWA's work in Gaza, claims Lazzarini, and mentions support for healthcare and education for a large number of children.
The Israeli parliament, the Knesset, has approved a law that prohibits UNRWA from operating in East Jerusalem and in Israel. The law is set to come into force in January, but Lazzarini said that he has urged the UN to try to stop the law from being implemented.
Lazzarini's official mission in Geneva, Switzerland, was a meeting with UNRWA's advisory body, where the future of operations in war-torn Gaza was discussed.
According to excerpts from the meeting, Lazzarini said that UNRWA is currently in its "darkest hour", and that the situation is characterized by "unrelenting dystopian horror".
He also warned during the meeting that "the international law-based order, which has existed since the end of World War II, is threatened".
UNRWA's operations and its personnel in Gaza have been questioned by Israel. Around 240 UNRWA employees have been killed in Gaza since the war began after the terrorist-designated Hamas attack on Israel last year.
