UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini (French)
The Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), Philippe Lazzarini, said that Israel informed them that it would no longer agree to send food convoys to the northern Gaza Strip.
“This is outrageous and indicates the deliberate obstruction of life-saving aid in the midst of a man-made famine,” he added in a post on X. “These restrictions must be lifted.”
In the same context, Lazzarini said that freezing US funding to the agency until March 2025 would negatively affect the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
Commenting on the US Congress’ approval of the decision to extend the freeze on UNRWA’s funding, Lazzarini warned that the organization’s funding deficit would threaten access to food, shelter, basic health services, and education.
He said, "This decision will have negative consequences for the Palestinian refugees in Gaza and the region."
Since January 26, 18 countries and the European Union have suspended their funding to UNRWA against the backdrop of Israeli allegations that a number of its employees participated in the October 7 attack, while the agency announced that it is investigating those allegations.
However, this March, some of these countries reviewed their decisions regarding UNRWA. The European Commission said it would release 50 million euros in funding for the agency.
Source: Agencies