2024-01-30 04:15:35
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres is scheduled to meet in New York on Tuesday with “major donors” to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), 12 of whose employees were accused of involvement in the Hamas attack on October 7 in Israel, his spokesman announced. Stephane Dujarric.
“On a personal level, the Secretary-General is horrified by the accusations against UNRWA employees,” Stephane Dujarric told reporters, stressing that the Secretary-General’s message to donors, especially to those who have suspended their contributions, is to at least “ensure the continuation of the agency’s operations while we have tens of thousands.” Of the dedicated employees working in the region,” according to Agence France-Presse.
According to Dujarric, Guterres met on Monday morning with the Permanent Representative of the United States to the United Nations, Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, and will hold a meeting on Tuesday afternoon in New York with the main donors to UNRWA.
The spokesman indicated that Guterres communicated with the leadership of UNRWA and donors, as well as with leaders in the region, including Jordanian King Abdullah II and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, with whom he spoke on Monday.
UNRWA, which provides vital aid to the Palestinians in Gaza, faces additional complications in addition to the hardships resulting from the war, after 12 of its employees were accused of involvement in a Hamas attack on the settlements surrounding Gaza on October 7th.
These accusations increased the pace of attacks by Israeli officials on the agency, while several countries, led by the United States, suspended their contributions to funding UNRWA activities.
In a joint statement, 20 humanitarian organizations, including Oxfam, Save the Children, and ActionAid, expressed their “outrage” at the suspension of aid.
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken on Monday urged UNRWA to investigate these accusations, but he distanced himself from calls to end its work.
For his part, European Union spokesman Eric Mamer said that the Union asked UNRWA on Monday to “agree to an audit that will be conducted by independent experts chosen by the European Commission,” according to Agence France-Presse.
Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz announced on Monday the cancellation of a meeting scheduled for Wednesday with UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini, demanding his resignation.
Dujarric said that “any staff member involved in a terrorist act will be held accountable, including through criminal prosecutions,” but that “at this stage, the outlook for UNRWA and the millions of people it helps – not only in Gaza but also in East Jerusalem, the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria – is limited.” “Very bleak.”
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