Unsupported Israeli allegations about Unrwa links to terrorism led major donors to cut $450m in funding to the main humanitarian agency working in
Gaza at a time when people there were dying in droves.
Three months later, the situation has only worsened with the onset of a human-made famine on top of the bombing, the collapse of healthcare, the lack of water and a rise in epidemics. And despite a rigorous inquiry by the former French foreign minister Catherine Colonna, supported by three well-respected research institutes,
there is still no evidence for the claim that significant numbers of Unrwa employees have Hamas or Islamic Jihad ties.
There is a separate review under way into specific claims Unrwa employees took part in the 7 October attack but that investigation is still not complete, UN officials say. The last time there was a progress report, however, Israel was still withholding cooperation.
The Colonna inquiry, which is a broader assessment of Unrwa neutrality, wrote to the Israeli authorities in March and then again in April asking for names and evidence behind Israeli claims of
Hamas and Islamic Jihad ties.
Arguably, Israel did not need to cooperate as Unrwa’s donors proved themselves to be all too eager to cut off funding without seeing any evidence.
Most of the big country donors have since resumed the flow of funds. The UK has held back and Germany is only funding Unrwa operations outside Gaza. Although the trigger for the cut in funding was the allegations about 7 October, the UK and German governments have said they will take the Colonna report on the broader questions of integrity and neutrality into account when they review their positions.
For the US, formerly Unrwa’s biggest source of finance, it is too late. Congress has insisted US funding of the agency should not resume until March 2025 at the earliest.
There was an element of miscalculation and accident in how this funding crisis unfolded. On 18 January, the Unrwa commissioner general, Philippe Lazzarini, was summoned to the Israeli foreign ministry and presented with a list of a dozen Unrwa staff alleged to have taken part in the Hamas attack on 7 October in which 1,200 Israelis were killed.
Lazzarini checked the list and found that the 12 named men were or had been employees, though two of them had already died. There was no evidence to prove that the other 10 had played any role on 7 October but the commissioner general used his executive powers to fire them anyway, to protect Unrwa’s reputation and its operations in Gaza.
www.aljazeera.com
#FreeHaiti
“the fukk we fall for that dumb ass bullshyt?!”
your sacrifice and your service. Fortunately, I wasn't outside the wire but I have the utmost respect for ppl who were
www.theguardian.com
This is some Bugs Bunny type shyt.
