UNRWA chief says agency reached 'breaking point' amid funding crisis
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The chief of the UN's agency for Palestinian refugees UNRWA says the agency's ability to fulfill its mandate is now "seriously threatened".
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Israeli occupation soldiers take up position as they raid the UNRWA headquarters in the Gaza Strip, on Thursday, Feb. 8, 2024. (AP Photo)
The UN agency for Palestinian refugees UNRWA warned Thursday it has reached a critical juncture as it struggles to cope with the ongoing war in Gaza.
"It is with profound regret that I must now inform you that UNRWA has reached a breaking point," Chief Philippe Lazzarini expressed.
"The Agency's ability to fulfill the mandate given through General Assembly resolution 302 is now seriously threatened," he wrote in a letter to the assembly in reference to the resolution under which the agency was founded in 1949.
Several countries -- including the United States, Britain, Germany, and Japan -- have suspended funding to UNRWA following unfounded Israeli claims that some of the agency's staff took part in the Palestinian Resistance Operation Al-Aqsa Flood October 7.
In an interview published over the weekend, Lazzarini emphasized that $438 million has been frozen -- the equivalent of more than half of expected funding for 2024, pointing out that "Israel" was waging a concerted effort to destroy UNRWA.
The UN arbitrarily fired the accused employees and has begun an internal probe of UNRWA, despite Lazzarini asserting Thursday that "Israel" has provided no evidence against the 12 former employees it accuses, but 16 countries have suspended funding anyway.
"I have cautioned donors and host countries that without new funding, UNRWA operations across the region will be severely compromised from March," he indicated.
He added, "I fear we are on the edge of a monumental disaster with grave implications for regional peace, security and human rights."
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