The US, UK and several other countries cut off financial support to UNRWA following suspicions that some staff members were involved in the 7 October Hamas attack, Norway and Ireland continue providing aid through the agency.
On Friday, the UN agency (UNRWA) said it had decided “to immediately terminate the contracts of these staff members and launch an investigation in order to establish the truth without delay,” according to Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA commissioner-general.
The US and UK suspended funding after Israel provided evidence through its security services that 12 UNRWA employees may have been involved in the 7 October attacks. Canada, Finland, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Australia and the Netherlands also confirmed their decision to suspend support.
Ireland and Norway, for their part, said they would continue to support the Palestinians through the agency, but Norway’s representative office stressed that the fact of involvement in the attacks was “deeply disturbing.”
Norway continues our support for the Palestinian people through UNRWA. International support for Palestine is needed now more than ever, Norway’s Representative Office to Palestine said on X, referring to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees or UNRWA.
The UN agency, established in 1949, provides health care, education and other humanitarian aid to Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. Since the 7 October attack, UNRWA has been using its facilities throughout Gaza to house civilians.
