UK government announces £23 million in additional support for UNRWA
Last month, UNRWA’s acting chief Christian Saunders terminated the employment of 70 Gaza-based staff members with immediate effect
The UK government has announced £23 million in additional support for UNRWA to provide aid to Palestinian refugees in Gaza.
Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper described the humanitarian situation in Gaza as “desperate”.
She added:”Families urgently need food, shelter, clean water and medical support – I saw first-hand during my visit to Jordan how UNRWA is central to delivering help at the scale required.”
Following the October 7 Hamas attacks, more than ten Western countries—including the US, UK, and Germany—suspended funding to UNRWA after the agency began investigating twelve staff members allegedly involved in abductions and killings on that day.
Last month, UNRWA’s acting chief Christian Saunders terminated the employment of 70 Gaza-based staff members with immediate effect, citing the agency’s “safety, security, and operational neutrality.”
Pic Leon Neal/PA Wire
Reports indicated that these dismissals followed a USAID watchdog’s warning about over 100 current and former staff members’ potential ties to Hamas’s military wing.
“UNRWA stated the decision to dismiss staff was made “strictly within its legal framework to mitigate safety and security risks for both refugees and UN personnel.”
Israeli foreign ministry spokesperson Oren Marmorstein previously accused more than 2,135 UNRWA workers of being members of Hamas or Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
In the immediate aftermath of October 7, UNRWA had already dismissed around a dozen employees over evidence of links to Hamas and the attacks in southern Israel.
However, the Colonna Review group—which examined neutrality, accountability, and integrity within UNRWA—found Israeli authorities “had not provided enough supporting evidence to back up further accusations” against specific staff.
The Review reported that UNRWA had regularly provided Israel with staff lists for vetting, and that “the Israeli government has not informed UNRWA of any concerns relating to any UNRWA staff based on these staff lists since 2011.”
The UK, alongside other states, resumed UNRWA funding in July 2024.
This week, at a UN pledging conference, Ambassador James Kariuki, UK Chargé d’Affaires to the UN, said:”UNRWA remains indispensable to the delivery of essential services to millions of Palestinian refugees across Gaza and the Middle East.”
He added:”To this end, I am pleased to announce that the United Kingdom will provide $30.7 million to UNRWA this year, including $1.3 million to support implementation of the Colonna Report.
“We welcome progress on implementation to date and urge UNRWA to continue this effort. Through our role as co-chair of the Neutrality Working Group, we will continue to support reforms to strengthen neutrality, governance, and oversight. ”
Israel responded this week with a spokesperson for its embassy in London saying: “Unrwa has completely failed its mission. Instead of being strengthened, it should be dismantled. Israel remains committed to its obligations under international law, as well as to the facilitation of humanitarian assistance. This is indisputable,” they said adding: “Unfortunately, that cannot be said about Unrwa”.
It has previously been argued that when alternative or non-UN organisations, such as the US- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), took over aid distribution in Gaza, “the system faced widespread chaos, severe civilian casualties, and strong condemnation from international human rights groups.”
In her latest announcement Cooper said that, working with international partners, the renewed funding “will help sustain [UNRWA’s] vital work for 5.9 million Palestinian refugees across the region and civilians in Gaza, supporting primary healthcare, basic education, social services, and emergency food and shelter.”
She emphasised the UK’s ongoing support for UNRWA’s reform efforts, including the Action Plan following the Colonna Report.
Israel, however, said the Colonna Review was insufficient and “an effort to avoid the problem and not address it head-on.”
The UK has also served as co-chair of the Neutrality Working Group, advocating for “strict oversight, governance, and accountability” within UNRWA’s operations.
Cooper stated that Israel must comply with its obligations to facilitate humanitarian assistance, ensure aid workers can operate safely, and allow UN agencies, including UNRWA, to reach those in need.
On Monday, Cooper was among the speakers at a reception hosted by the Labour Friends of Palestine and the Middle East organisation.
In a statement the group said the reception had”re-affirmed our commitment to peace, accountability and a two-state solution.”
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