Israel Denies Visa To Top UN Official in Palestine

Jonathan Whittall of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is denied entry to the occupied territories, said Farhan Haq, a UN Secretary General António Guterres spokesman.

OCHA spokeswoman Eri Kaneko said the agency was notified of the decision last week.

Kaneko said, "It was indicated to us that our current Head of Office, Jonathan Whittall, won't have his visa extended by Israeli authorities beyond August.

“This came immediately after remarks in a press briefing about starving people being killed while trying to reach food,” Kaneko said.

According to her, speaking about conditions on the ground is part of OCHA’s mandate.

“Attempts to silence us are not new, but threats of reduced access to the civilians we’re trying to serve are intensifying,” she added.

OCHA monitors and coordinates aid in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, and plays a key role in advocating for the protection of civilians under international humanitarian law.

Philippe Lazzarini, the director of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA), has not been granted a visa since June 2024, according to agency spokeswoman Juliette Touma.

The local heads of UN Women and the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights have also been denied visas.

Humanitarian officials say the visa denials are part of a broader pattern of retaliation by Israel against UN agencies that publicly report on violations of international law.

“Each time a UN official reports on what they see, they face threats of further reduced access to the civilians we are trying to serve,” Tom Fletcher, head of humanitarian affairs for the UN, told the Security Council on Wednesday.

“Nowhere today is the tension between our advocacy mandate and delivering aid greater than in Gaza.”

The besieged Palestinian territory faces an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe, with tens of thousands killed by Israeli forces and widespread famine taking hold.