Canada to resume funding to UNRWA: state media
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A senior official in the federal Canadian government says the country's Minister of International Development intends to announce new funding to the agency.
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Workers adjust the flag of Canada ahead of the COP28 U.N. Climate Summit, Wednesday, Nov. 29, 2023, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) reported that the Canadian federal government will resume funding to the UN Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA.
Canada was among the countries that suspended funding to the agency following unverified Israeli claims about a dozen UNRWA employees allegedly taking part in the Palestinian Resistance's operation on October 7.
A senior official in the government told CBC that, in addition to proceeding with a planned payment of $25 million in April, Canada's Minister of International Development Ahmed Hussen intends to announce new funding to the agency.
According to the source, the Canadian federal government is comfortable reinstating funding and made its decision after the country's officials received an interim report from the United Nations investigating Israeli claims.
CBC previously reported that Canada had not seen evidence supporting the Israeli allegations against the employees when making the initial decision.
The announcement deals a blow to the Israeli occupation have been endlessly trying to demonize the Palestinian refugee agency in order to dismantle it.
On Monday, "Israel's" ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan claimed that UNRWA's work in Gaza was over, calling for the defunding and dismantling of the organization and accusing its staff of taking part in the October 7 events.
He stressed that the agency will "never again operate in Gaza," citing that its role is "finished and it must be replaced."
"UNRWA must be defunded and dismantled," he added.
Phillipe Lazzarini, the head of UNRWA, has reiterated that "Israel" provided no evidence against the accused agency employees.
Earlier, UNRWA announced that the number of its employees killed since the beginning of the war in the Gaza Strip has reached 162, emphasizing that the figure is "unprecedented" in the history of the United Nations.
UNRWA employees detained, tortured by Israeli army
A couple of days ago, UNRWA accused the Israeli occupation forces of detaining "several of its staff from the Gaza Strip" who later reported experiences of torture and abuse while in custody.
"Our staff have reported atrocious events while they were detained and during interrogations by the Israeli authorities. These reports included torture, severe ill-treatment, abuse, and sexual exploitation," the agency said in a statement to AFP.
"Some of our staff have conveyed to UNRWA teams that they were forced to confessions under torture and ill-treatment" while being asked about the October 7 events.
"These forced confessions as a result of torture are being used by the Israeli authorities to further spread misinformation about the agency as part of attempts to dismantle UNRWA," the agency said.
"This is putting our staff in Gaza at risk and has serious implications on our operations in Gaza and around the region."
