Palestinians stand at the entrance of the UNRWA-run University College for Educational Science Ramallah city in the occupied West Bank on 29 January 2024. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres pleaded for continued support for UNRWA, the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, which is threatened by a fierce row over alleged staff involvement in Hamas’s 7 October attack that started the war.
- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is set to meet with
key donors to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) following
accusations by Israel that 12 of its staff were involved in the 7 October
attacks. - Countries, including the US, France, Britain, Germany, and
Japan, have suspended further funding to the agency, impacting its operations. - Guterres aims to persuade donors to ensure the continuity of
UNRWA’s operations, emphasising the dedicated staff working in the region.
United
Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will meet Tuesday with key donors to
the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) after 12 of its staff were
accused by Israel of involvement in the 7 October attacks, his spokesperson
said.
Several
countries, including the United States, France, Britain, Germany and Japan,
have announced the suspension of further funding to the agency.
“The
secretary-general is personally horrified by the accusations against employees
of UNRWA,” Guterres’s spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said Monday.
“But
his message to donors – especially those who have suspended their contributions
– is to at least guarantee the continuity of UNRWA’s operations, as we have
tens of thousands of dedicated staff working throughout the region.”
Guterres
already met with Washington’s representative to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield
on Monday, and “he will be hosting a meeting here in New York with the
major donors for UNRWA (Tuesday) afternoon here,” Dujarric said.
He said:
The secretary-general has also been engaging with the UNRWA leadership and donors to UNRWA, as well as regional leaders, such as King Abdullah of Jordan, whom he spoke to a short while ago, and President (Abdel Fattah) al-Sisi of Egypt.
UNRWA
said it has acted promptly over allegations but that cuts in funding will
affect ordinary Palestinians.
The
UN agency has long been under scrutiny by Israel, which accuses it of
systematically going against the country’s interests.
In
the southern Gaza city of Rafah, where 1.5 million displaced people have taken
refuge, Palestinians told AFP that the support they received from the agency
amounted to a lifeline.
The
unprecedented 7 October Hamas attack resulted in about 1 140 deaths, mostly
civilians, in southern Israel, according to an AFP tally of official figures.
Militants
also seized 250 hostages, of whom Israel says around 132 remain in Gaza,
including the bodies of at least 28.
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Israel’s
relentless military offensive has killed at least 26 637 people in Gaza, most
of them women and children, according to the Hamas government’s health ministry
in the territory.
Israel
has vowed to stop the agency’s work in Gaza after the war.
The
country’s Foreign Minister Israel Katz said Monday he had cancelled a meeting
with UNRWA head Philippe Lazzarini scheduled for later in the week.