Spain’s Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares announced the extra funding at a joint news conference in Madrid with UNRWA chief Phillipe Lazzarini.
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Spain’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Jose Manuel Albares (R) and UN Palestinian refugee aid agency (UNRWA) chief Philippe Lazzarini give a joint press conference in Madrid on March 7, 2024. (Photo by JAVIER SORIANO / AFP)
Spain said Thursday it would give an additional 20 million euros to the UN Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA amid endless Israeli attempts to dismantle it.
Following unverified Israeli claims about a dozen UNRWA employees allegedly taking part in the Palestinian Resistance’s operation on October 7, several countries — including the United States, Britain, Germany, and Japan — suspended funding to the agency. The total frozen amounts to $450 million — the equivalent of more than half the funds UNRWA received in 2023.
The United Nations fired the employees accused by “Israel” and has begun an internal probe. But Phillipe Lazzarini, the head of UNRWA, has reiterated that “Israel” provided no evidence against the accused agency employees.
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
UNRWA employs around 30,000 people in the occupied Palestinian territories, Lebanon, Jordan and Syria — with about 13,000 staff in the Gaza Strip.
The European Commission, recognizing steps taken by the UN, said Friday it would release 50 million euros ($54 million) in UNRWA funding.
Spain’s Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares announced the extra funding at a joint news conference in Madrid with Lazzarini.
“We will make a new contribution of 20 million euros to UNRWA to support the organisation in its crucial humanitarian work in Gaza and to provide the food, education and health needs of the nearly six million Palestinian refugees in the region,” Albares said.
On his part, Lazzarini said he hoped Spain’s move would encourage those nations that had suspended their aid to the agency to once again give it money.
He reiterated his call for the road crossings into Gaza to be opened to allow more aid into the territory.
“Today we do not have the meaningful, at scale, uninterrupted humanitarian assistance reaching the people in Gaza in desperate need of assistance,” the UNRWA chief indicated.
“The simple answer would be the political will to open the road crossing and to have daily, at scale, convoys and flow of humanitarian assistance going into the Gaza Strip.”
Canada to resume funding to UNRWA: state media
This comes shortly after the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) reported that the Canadian federal government will resume funding to UNRWA.
Canada was among the countries that suspended funding to the agency following the unverified Israeli claims.
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.
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