(Witness): Suspending UNRWA funding:
A collective punishment for Palestinian refugees
On January 26,2024, the United
States Department of State announced a temporary suspension of new funding to
the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA)
following Israeli authorities accusing some agency employees of involvement in
Hamas attack on Israeli settlements on October 7. Italy, Canada, Australia,
Germany, and Finland took part in this suspension.
The Palestinian Association for Human
Rights (Witness) asserts that UNRWA plays a crucial role as a primary
organization providing humanitarian assistance and protection to refugees in
Gaza Strip, operating under a humanitarian and development mandate until a fair
and enduring resolution to their situation is achieved.
"Many are hungry as the clock is
ticking towards a looming famine”, said Philippe Lazzarini, the UNRWA
commissioner general. The Agency runs shelters for over 1 million people and
provides food and primary healthcare even at the height of the hostilities. "It
is shocking to see a suspension of funds to the Agency in reaction to
allegations against a small group of staff, especially given the immediate
action that UNRWA took by terminating their contracts and asking for a transparent
independent investigation”, he added.
(Witness) views the suspension of
funding of several countries to UNRWA as a violation of their obligations under
the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. These
prompt actions can further tighten the blockade on Gazans who rely heavily on
international aid especially provided by UNRWA. (Witness) deems this practical
step a direct approval for the genocide and raises various questions:
How
do the nations in the advisory committee of the agency view the direct
targeting of agency centers and the evident escalation by the occupation? What
is their perspective on safeguarding the agency's facilities being
international institutions?
How
does the agency and the supporting countries respond to the Israeli
occupation's actions resulting in the death of its personnel?
How
do nations react to massacres committed against civilians in UN centers by
occupation forces?
"Israel will seek to stop UNRWA from
operating in Gaza after the war”, Foreign Minister Israel Katz said. The
foreign ministry aims to ensure "that UNRWA will not be a part of the day
after,” Katz said on X. He added that he would try to gather support for the
move from the United States, European Union and other major donors to the
agency.
The Palestinian Association for
Human Rights (Witness) affirms that freezing funding for UNRWA is a deliberate
practice aimed at undermining the agency's role in providing relief to the
Palestinian people who have been enduring hardships since 1948. Given this
action, we call for the following:
1. The UNRWA advisory committee to
hold an urgent meeting to address and navigate the challenges facing the
agency’s work arising from successive Israeli aggressions. This includes a
thorough examination of the outcomes and measures related to the misleading
claims made by the occupation.
2. The concerned countries to
retreat from their decisions to freeze their funding, especially that some of
them are members of the advisory committee and are well knowledgeable about
UNRWA’s activities.
3. The necessity to provide legal
and security protection for facilities and properties of international
organizations.
4. UNRWA to open an investigation
into crimes committed by the occupation inside its facilities including targeting
civilians and staffers and demanding compensation.
5. UNRWA to announce an emergency
state and convene an international conference to highlight Israeli attacks on
its facilities and the killing of dozens at its internationally protected centers.
The Palestinian
Association for Human Rights (Witness)
January 28,2024