The Israeli Knesset approved a bill on Monday that bans the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) from operating in Israel, despite objections from the United States and the United Nations.

The bill was approved by a majority of 92 votes to 10, after years of harsh Israeli criticism of UNRWA, which has increased since the start of the war in Gaza following the Al-Aqsa flood on October 7 of last year.

In this context, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that UNRWA employees must be held accountable for what he described as “terrorist activities” against Israel.

In a post on the X platform, Netanyahu also said that sustainable humanitarian aid must remain available in Gaza “now and in the future.”

For its part, UNRWA condemned the decision, describing the move as "shameful."

"It is outrageous that a UN member state is dismantling a UN agency that is also the largest responder to the humanitarian operation in Gaza," UNRWA spokeswoman Juliette Touma told AFP.

The United States, for its part, expressed "deep concern" on Monday about the bill to ban UNRWA, with State Department spokesman Matthew Miller telling reporters, "We have made clear to the government of Israel that we are deeply concerned about this proposed legislation," stressing the agency's "critical" role in distributing humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip.