Australia To Continue Funding, Foreign Minister Wong: We Know UNRWA Is Very Important

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong. (Wikimedia Commons/Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade/Sarah Friend)

JAKARTA - Australia will continue funding for the main Palestinian aid agency at the United Nations, Foreign Minister Penny Wong said on Friday, nearly two months after discontinuing funding for allegations that some of the agency's employees participated in a Hamas attack on Israel in October.

Australia has consulted with UNRWA and other donors, believing the aid agency is not a terror organization, Foreign Minister Wong said. "New and additional security will protect aid money, and frozen funds of 6 million Australian dollars will be disbursed soon," he said.

"We have children and families who are starving and we have the shared capacity of the international community to help them," Foreign Minister Wong told a news conference.

"We know that UNRWA is very important and important in distributing the aid," he continued.

On the same occasion, Foreign Minister Wong also announced an additional 4 million Australian dollars in funds for UNICEF and 2 million Australian dollars for separate UN facilities in Gaza.

In addition, Australia will also provide 140 parachutes to Jordan and the United Arab Emirates for use in air delivery.

When asked about reports of some Palestinians stranded in transit after Australia canceled a temporary visa, Foreign Minister Wong said all applicants must undergo security checks and ask the Minister of Home Affairs the question.

Earlier, Australia along with more than a dozen donor countries suspended funding to the United Nations Aid and Work Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in January.

The suspension decision came after Israel accused 12 of 13,000 agency employees in Gaza of participating in the Hamas militant group attack on Israel's southern region on October 7.

The United Nations has launched an investigation into the allegations. Meanwhile, UNRWA fired several of its staff after Israel provided information to the aid agency regarding the allegations.

Before Australia, Sweden, Canada and the European Union had continued funding to some extent. The organization's leader said last week he was very optimistic that other donors would soon resume funding.