UN Secretary-General António Guterres has issued an urgent appeal to world leaders to address a massive funding gap of approximately $100 million facing UNRWA, the UN agency dedicated to Palestinian refugees. Speaking at a donor conference on Tuesday, he warned that this financial crisis places the agency’s operations in grave jeopardy, thereby endangering the lives of millions of Palestinians. He also strongly condemned the “disinformation and smear campaigns” directed against the relief agency. Al Jazeera reported this news.
The UN Secretary-General sharply criticized the “dire” living conditions in the besieged Gaza Strip, violence by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank, and Israeli attacks on Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon. He noted that, alongside the funding shortfall, UNRWA’s situation is becoming increasingly precarious due to various harsh restrictions imposed by Israel across the occupied Palestinian territories. Established by the UN General Assembly in 1949, the agency currently provides food, education, healthcare, and shelter to approximately 2.6 million Palestinian refugees across Gaza, the West Bank, East Jerusalem, Lebanon, Jordan, and Syria. António Guterres stated unequivocally that, amidst global instability, UNRWA serves as a force for stability. He rejected all deliberate attempts to undermine the agency through disinformation, the spread of misleading information, legal hurdles, and diplomatic obstacles.
Guterres also expressed deep sorrow over the fact that 390 UNRWA staff members have been killed in Israeli attacks in Gaza since October 2023. Ahmet Yıldız, Turkey’s Permanent Representative attending the donor conference, also termed these attacks a “violation” of international law, stating that these obstacles are being created to deprive Palestinians of their right to return to their own land.
