UN calls for aid agency funds to be resumed
GAZA/JERUSALEM — The secretary-general of the United Nations on Sunday called on countries to continue funding the main agency providing aid in Gaza after several of its employees were accused of taking part in the Hamas attack on Israel that ignited the conflict four months ago.
UN chief Antonio Guterres warned that the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, known as UNRWA, would be forced to scale back aid to more than 2 million Palestinians as soon as February. The coastal enclave is in the grip of a severe humanitarian crisis, with a quarter of the population facing starvation.
“The abhorrent alleged acts of these staff members must have consequences,” Guterres said in a statement.
He said that of the 12 employees accused of taking part in the attack, nine had been immediately terminated, one was confirmed dead and “the identity of the two others is being clarified”. He said all would be held accountable, including through criminal prosecution.
The UNRWA has 13,000 staffers in Gaza, nearly all of them Palestinians. It provides basic services, from medical care to education, for Palestinians.
More than 2 million of the territory’s 2.3 million people depend on it for “sheer survival”, including food and shelter, UNRWA director Philippe Lazzarini said, warning this lifeline can “collapse any time now”.
The United States suspended funding over the weekend, followed by several other countries, including Britain, Germany and Italy.
The dispute over the UNRWA came as the International Court of Justice ruled on Friday that Israel must do its utmost to limit death and destruction in its Gaza offensive.
The top UN court has asked Israel for a compliance report in a month, placing added scrutiny on Israel’s military. The court’s binding ruling stopped short of ordering a ceasefire, but its orders were in part a rebuke of Israel’s conduct in the conflict.
The case brought by South Africa to the UN court alleged Israel is committing genocide, which Israel vehemently denies. A final ruling is expected to take years.
Many countries welcomed the ruling but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denounced it as “outrageous”. Other countries such as Britain expressed reservations.
The court ordered Israel to urgently allow aid into Gaza. The amount of aid entering the territory remains well below the daily average of 500 trucks before the conflict, and UN agencies say distribution within Gaza has been severely hampered by the fighting and delays at Israeli checkpoints.
Cease-fire demand
Demonstrators in Europe, including in Germany and Italy, took to the streets on Saturday to demand a cease-fire, the Turkish media Anadolu Agency reported.
Around 20,000 people marched in Madrid on Saturday in support of Palestinians.
Many of the marchers carried banners and placards denouncing the “genocide” in Gaza, which has been under relentless bombardment and siege.
“They have been without water, without food, without anything, for almost 110 days,” a Madrid demonstrator, 54-year-old Lobna Elnakhala, said of the situation in Gaza.
“Children are dying and living in a very difficult situation.”
Some banners called for sanctions to be levied against Israel.
The Israeli army on Sunday said its special forces were continuing to engage in “intensive battles” in Gaza’s main southern city of Khan Yunis. Strikes were also carried out in central and northern Gaza, it added.
The World Health Organization and the medical charity MSF have issued urgent warnings about the largest health facility in Khan Younis, Nasser Hospital, saying the remaining staff could barely function with supplies running out and intense fighting nearby.
WHO footage showed people in the crowded facility being treated on blood-smeared floors as frantic loved ones shouted and jostled. Cats scavenged on a mound of medical waste.