Founded directly after Israel’s establishment, UNRWA was established to temporarily assist Palestinian refugees displaced by the war. Decades later, it continues to provide services to almost six million Palestinian refugees in Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon, Jordan, and Syria. Beyond UNRWA, the UN has maintained peacekeeping missions in the Middle East for decades, including UNIFIL in Lebanon. However, some wonder whether they don’t do enough to either directly help Palestinians or improve the humanitarian situation. Those who believe the UN’s efforts hurt argue their forces are ineffective in stopping violent actors such as Hamas and Hezbollah and fail to maintain strict neutrality. Those who believe the UN’s efforts help argue that without peacekeeping forces, refugee populations in the region would face more severe humanitarian crises. Also, despite their limitations, they act as buffers between warring factions, preventing wider regional escalations.

With this context, we debate the question: UN Efforts in the Middle East: Helping or Hurting?