UN for Palestinian refugees All states that had banned funding to the agency (UNRWA) have already reversed their decision, except the United States and the United Kingdom, but the latter has agreed to resume it.
UNRWA Commissioner General Philippe Lazzarini made the announcement at the end of the UN Donors Conference in New York.
Donations received through this Friday will allow the organization to continue operating until the end of September, Lazzarini said. In the morning, the agency received the money only at the end of August.
The initiative, supported by UNRWA, brought together 118 countries, more than half of the United Nations member states.
Just before the start of the donor conference at the UN, Slovenian Foreign Minister Danja Fajon appeared at the entrance of the Security Council with dozens of diplomats to urge the remaining countries to join the effort to support UNRWA. Urgent and difficult times.”
UNRWA, which before the current conflict was responsible for providing education, health and other social services to two-thirds of the 2.4 million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, has been under severe pressure since last January, when Israel accused 12 of its people. Members involved in the October 7 Hamas attacks in Israeli territory. Immediately, major donors froze their funds and remittances.
In the months that followed, the UN said it employed “450 terrorists” in the Gaza Strip, or that 17% of its 30,000 workers were actually members of Hamas. Israel escalated its accusations against the agency.
In the absence of evidence related to Israel’s accusations, most countries decided to resume funding, unlike the United States, which voted in Congress to completely suspend funding until at least March 2025.
At the start of the donors’ conference, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres – who is said to be “pro-Palestinian” in the crosshairs of Israel – said: “The men and women of UNRWA continue to do their work bravely, in extreme conditions and despite their own suffering.”
Guterres recalled that 195 UNRWA members were victims of Israeli bombings, “the highest number of personnel killed in UN history”, and those who continued their work were “increasingly the target of violent protests and harsh disinformation campaigns”.
The Portuguese reiterated that the UN “is the backbone of humanitarian operations in Gaza” and that “without UNRWA’s necessary support and funding, Palestinian refugees are deprived of decisive support and the last ray of hope for a better future”.
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