Defunding UNRWA ‘disproportionate, dangerous’ amid Gaza war: Top EU diplomat

The European Union’s foreign policy chief has warned that cutting funds to the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) is both a “disproportionate and dangerous” act that puts hundreds of thousands of lives at risk.

In a blog post on Sunday, Josep Borrell said that the alleged wrongdoing of individuals should never lead to a collective punishment.

The remarks came after over a dozen countries, including the US, suspended funding for UNRWA following Israeli accusations about the involvement of 12 of the agency’s 30,000 staff members in the October 7 operation by the Gaza-based Palestinian Hamas resistance group.

“Defunding UNRWA would be both disproportionate and dangerous,” he said.

“UNRWA has been given a very difficult task by the UN General Assembly, including by all EU Member States. The agency is expected to deliver high quality, low-cost public services in a high-risk environment employing mainly local staff.”

Borrell also noted that it was inconceivable organizations would be defunded entirely based on the alleged behavior of individuals.

“If some doctors in a European hospital were involved in criminal activities, there would be a thorough investigation and all appropriate actions would be taken,” he added.

“However, no government would ever stop funding the health service, as this would primarily punish the people who receive these services.”

UNRWA has no replacement in Gaza, UN warns amid funding cuts

Several Western countries have suspended the funding over unproven allegations by Israel against the agency.

With its 13,000 employees in the Gaza Strip, UNRWA is central to providing vital aid to Palestinians in the besieged territory amid a devastating Israeli war, the top EU diplomat emphasized, warning, “Defunding the agency would put hundreds of thousands of lives at risk.”

He further said that UNRWA’s demise would be “a serious risk for regional stability” as the UN agency provides assistance to Gaza and supplies healthcare, education, and other vital services to some 5.6 million Palestinian refugees in the West Bank, as well as Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria.

Last week, UNRWA said its entire operations in West Asia, not only in Gaza, will likely be forced to shut down by the end of the month, if its funding is not restored.

Borrell noted that the suspended funds amount to more than $440 million, almost half of UNRWA’s expected income in 2024.

“Should UNRWA cease or limit services, which may be the case as early as the end of February, it would significantly aggravate the ongoing dramatic humanitarian crisis. The lives of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians, not only in Gaza, are at stake,” he said.

Israel waged its genocidal war on Gaza on October 7 after Hamas carried out Operation Al-Aqsa Storm against the occupying entity in retaliation for its intensified atrocities against the Palestinian people.

So far, the Tel Aviv regime has killed at least 27,365 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injured 66,630 others.

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