Chicago – January 28, 2024
The decision by some Western countries to restrict aid to the UN Palestinian refugee agency is a “collective punishment,” according to the head of the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), as UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres joins him in encouraging donor countries to continue providing much-needed Gaza relief.
UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini expressed dismay that such decisions were made as “famine looms” in Gaza, which has been ravaged by over four months of continuous Israeli bombardment that has killed over 26,000 people.
The agency, which has 13,000 personnel in Gaza, is the primary body assisting the Gazan population during the humanitarian crisis. More than two million of the 2.3 million people in the besieged enclave rely on UNRWA for “sheer survival,” including food and shelter, according to Lazzarini, who warns that this lifeline could “collapse any time now.”
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres supported Lazzarini’s demand on Sunday, urging donor countries to continue funding the UN agency in charge of assistance operations in Gaza. “The dire needs of the desperate populations they serve must be met.”
