United Nations Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres has bemoaned a $100m gap in funding for the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, saying that millions of people are at risk due to the shortfall.
The UN Chief said that UNRWA’s situation was increasingly precarious due to the large funding shortfall and sweeping restrictions by Israel on the agency’s work throughout the occupied Palestinian territory.
Guterres told a donor conference on the UN agency, “As we meet here today, the safety and welfare of millions of Palestine refugees hangs in the balance.” Guterres referred to the “utterly appalling” living conditions in Gaza, violence by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank, and Israeli attacks on Lebanon, where many Palestinian refugees have sought shelter.
“[UNRWA] faces sweeping restrictions throughout the occupied Palestinian territory. And a cash shortfall that imperils its work across the region.”
Antonio Guterres
UNRWA, which was created by the UN General Assembly (UNGA) in 1949 to help Palestinians forced from their homes at the founding of Israel, has been forced to scale back its operations due to insufficient funding.
UNRWA works in Gaza, the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, Lebanon, Jordan and Syria, providing aid, schooling, healthcare, social services and shelter to 2.6 million Palestinian refugees.
The United States was UNRWA’s biggest donor but cut funding in January 2024 after Israel alleged – without providing evidence – that a small number of UNRWA staff took part in the deadly October 7, 2023, attack by Hamas on southern Israel.
An investigation of the allegations by the UN’s Office of Internal Oversight Services found that nine UNRWA employees “may have been involved” in the attack.The investigation focused on 19 staff members that Israel had made accusations against and found either no evidence, or insufficient evidence, against the other 10.
Also, Guterres said that further funding cuts for UNRWA could “push conditions beyond breaking point.” He said that the agency’s funding shortfall jeopardised its ability to meet its mandate, which was renewed by the UNGA six months ago with overwhelming member support. “They cannot keep going like this without urgent backing and financial support from member states,” Guterres said, noting that the agency had taken decisive steps to implement reforms and update its policy on outside and political activities following Israel’s accusations.
He asserted that UNRWA is a “stabilising force in an age of instability,” rejecting what he called continued efforts to undermine the agency through “disinformation, smear campaigns, legislative actions, operational restrictions, diplomatic roadblocks and more.” He added that such actions threatened the wellbeing of millions of Palestinians as well as the agency’s staff, noting that 390 UNRWA personnel had been killed by Israel in Gaza since October 2023.
Speaking at the meeting, Turkiye’s permanent representative to the UN, Ahmet Yildiz, also said that UNRWA was facing unprecedented political attacks and obstruction of its work, while its staff and facilities were the focus of physical assaults by Israel in Gaza and across the occupied territory. Yildiz said that Israel’s actions were “blatant violations of international law”, designed “to deprive Palestinian refugees of their right to return to their land.”
Countries Urged To Cover UNRWA Funding Gap
Moreover, Guterres called on countries to cover a $100m gap in funding for the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA. Palestine’s UN Envoy, Riyad Mansour also called on countries to increase financial support for UNRWA, saying that the refugee crisis has worsened in recent years amid Israel’s military campaign in the occupied Palestinian territory.
Speaking at the General Assembly Ad Hoc Committee’s announcement of voluntary contributions to UNRWA, Mansour said the plight of Palestinian refugees remains one of the longest unresolved issues before the UN. “Regrettably, the question of Palestine refugees remains the most prolonged refugee question globally and one of the longest standing items on the UN agenda,” he said.
Welcoming the financial pledges announced at the conference, the Palestinian envoy appealed to donor countries to increase their contributions as the agency confronts mounting financial pressures.
“We welcome the pledges of solidarity and funding made today. I urge as many countries as possible—those who contribute, to contribute more, and those who have not yet, to do so, to enter the contribution process.”
Riyad Mansour
Additionally, Christian Saunders, UNRWA’s Acting Commissioner-General, appealed for emergency funding to prevent the underfunded agency from collapsing under the weight of war in Gaza, settler violence in the West Bank, and a $100 million cash shortfall. “UNRWA’s financial situation is untenable and the viability of our operations across the region is at stake,” he told the pledging conference convened by the President of the UN General Assembly.
