Israel and Hamas at war, day 113 | A United Nations agency in turmoil

Nine countries, including Canada, have suspended their financial contributions to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), after accusations by Israel that employees of the organization were involved in the October 7 attack. Essential for the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, the agency fears the repercussions on civilians.

Temporary cessation of all financial assistance

Following in the footsteps of the United States, several countries, including Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, Finland and Germany, have announced since Friday the temporary cessation of any additional financial aid to UNRWA. The UN agency has been in the hot seat since the Israeli authorities said they believe in the involvement of “several of its employees” in the Hamas attack on October 7. In reaction to these accusations, Ottawa announced the “suspension of all additional funding” to the agency, while a “thorough investigation” is carried out into these “allegations”. “Canada will not reduce its support to the people of Gaza, and it will continue to work with other partners to provide vital assistance,” assured International Development Minister Ahmed Hussen.

A sanction denounced by the agency

This is because the UN agency – whose funding comes almost entirely from Western countries – plays a central role in the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza, where deadly fighting continued on Saturday. “Suspending financial aid would mean cutting access has any possible international aid to Gaza », summarizes the director of the Canadian Observatory on Crises and Humanitarian Aid, François Audet. “All the education, health and sanitation programs are she who takes care of them. It handles all the distribution of international aid,” he explains. Created in 1949 in the wake of the first Arab-Israeli conflict, the agency’s mission is to provide humanitarian assistance to Palestinian refugees in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, but also in Lebanon and Syria. On Saturday, the head of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini, denounced the decision of donor countries to suspend vital aid, on which two million lives depend. “I am shocked that such decisions are being made based on the alleged behavior of a few individuals, while the war continues, needs worsen and the threat of famine looms,” he said. on X.

Twelve employees involved

While emphasizing the “essential role” of UNRWA in Gaza, the United States on Friday stressed the importance of the agency “responding to these accusations and taking any appropriate corrective action.” On Friday, the aid agency parted ways with several employees — 12, according to the United States — accused of involvement in the Oct. 7 Hamas attack in Israel. According to François Audet, the reaction of donor countries is “understandable”. “It would not be acceptable, especially in the eyes of the public, to turn a blind eye to these allegations,” he says. “At the same time, things have to be weighed. The agency has approximately 30,000 employees. Twelve people is a very small number,” he points out. Hamas asked “the United Nations and international organizations not to give in to threats and blackmail,” accusing Israel of wanting to deprive Gazans of all international aid. And Palestinian Authority Civil Affairs Minister Hussein al-Sheikh called on countries withdrawing support for UNRWA to “immediately reverse their decision.” The agency, he insisted, “needs maximum support […]and not that we cut off support and assistance.”

Israel wants to end UNRWA

Israel declared on Saturday that it no longer wanted the UN agency to play any role in Gaza after the war, calling for favoring agencies “sincerely dedicated to peace and development”. For a long time, the country has accused the organization of “perpetuating the Israeli-Palestinian conflict” by maintaining the idea – which it rejects – of the right of return for Palestinian refugees. Israel had particularly welcomed former US President Donald Trump’s initiative to cut annual aid of 300 million to the agency during his mandate. Washington resumed its payments from 2021, after the election of President Joe Biden.

The fighting continues

It is essential that donor countries restore financial aid as quickly as possible, believes François Audet. “The United Nations must quickly demonstrate that action has been taken in light of the allegations and that the agency is now capable of carrying out its mandate,” he emphasizes. Meanwhile, the war knows no respite in the Gaza Strip. According to witnesses, fighting continued on Saturday in the south of the enclave, particularly around the two main hospitals, Nasser and al-Amal. The International Court of Justice, the highest court of the UN, called on Israel on Friday to prevent any possible act of “genocide” in Gaza and allow the entry of humanitarian aid.

With Agence France-Presse