JERUSALEM (dpa-AFX) - The UN Palestine refugee agency's headquarters in East Jerusalem has been temporarily closed after an arson attack on Thursday following weeks of protests.
'This evening, Israeli residents set fire twice to the perimeter of the UNRWA Headquarters in occupied East Jerusalem. This took place while UNRWA and other UN Agencies' staff were on the compound,' UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said in a statement posted on social media.
'Our director with the help of other staff had to put out the fire themselves as it took the Israeli fire extinguishers and police a while before they turned up'.
A crowd accompanied by armed men were witnessed outside the compound chanting 'Burn down the United Nations'. Lazzarini attached a video of the incident on X.
While there were no casualties among the staff, the fire caused extensive damage to the outdoor areas.
'This is an outrageous development,' the UNRWA chief said. 'Once again, the lives of UN staff were at serious risk.'
Lazzarini said he has taken the decision to close down the compound 'until proper security is restored'.
Israeli extremists have been staging protests outside the UNRWA compound in Jerusalem over the past two months 'called by an elected member of the Jerusalem municipality.'
This marked 'the second appalling incident in less than a week' following a similar violent protest on Tuesday.
He noted that Tuesday's protest had turned violent when demonstrators threw stones at UN staff and at the buildings, 'under the watch of the Israeli police.'
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