The boss of the UN meets this Tuesday at NY with the “major donors” of the palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA), in the spotlight since accusations that 12 employees were involved in the attack Hamas on October 7 in Israelhis spokesperson announced this Monday.
“On a personal note, the secretary general is horrified by the accusations against employees of UNRWA“, his spokesperson told the press Stephane Dujarric.
But “His message to donors, particularly those who have suspended their contributions, is to at least ensure the continuity of the agency’s operations since we have tens of thousands of people who work dedicatedly in the region“, held.
The secretary general, Antonio Guterresalready met on Monday with “the permanent representative of the United States to the UN“, the ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfieldand on Tuesday afternoon it will meet “with UNRWA’s major donors”according to Dujarric.
Guterres is “involved with UNWRA leadership and donors as well as regional leaders such as the king Abadalah II of Jordan and the Egyptian president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi” with whom he spoke on Monday.
In the besieged and devastated territory of the Gaza StripUNWRA, which provides vital aid to civilians, is in trouble after accusations of the alleged involvement of 12 employees (of the 30,000 in the region) in the bloody attack carried out on October 7 by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas against Israel , which triggered the war.
Eleven countries – including USA, United Kingdom, Germany and Japan– have suspended their funding to the agency, despite Guterres asking over the weekend that they maintain the aid.
MORE INFORMATION: The West freezes contributions to UNRWA: “It could be dramatic, there is no other agency with the capacity to address the crisis”
On Monday, the European Union called on UNRWA to “accepts that independent experts chosen by the European Commission carry out an audit”.
The head of Israeli diplomacy, Israel Katzcanceled a meeting scheduled for Wednesday with UNRWA Commissioner General, Philippe Lazzariniand asked for his resignation on the social network X.
Dujarric insisted that “Any employee involved in a terrorist act will be held accountable, including through criminal prosecution“, but “Right now, the prospects for UNWRA and the millions of people it helps – not just in Loopbut also in East Jerusalem, West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria– they are very gloomy”.
