The Head Of UNRWA Calls His Organization Only Has Operational Funds Until The End Of May

UNRWA service at the Palestinian refugee shelter. (Twitter/@UNRWA)

JAKARTA - The head of the United Nations Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA) on Tuesday said its organization only had enough funds to carry out operations until the end of May, due to the large number of donors stopping their funding due to Israeli accusations that some of the agency's staff were involved in the Hamas attack last October.

"What I can say today is, we can carry out our operations until the end of May, while a month ago I only had visibility for the next one or two weeks," UNRWA Commissioner General Philippe Lazzarini told Reuters in Geneva, Switzerland, as quoted March 26.

"But this also shows how bad the financial situation of this organization is," he continued.

UNRWA, which provides essential assistance and services to Palestinian refugees in Gaza, the Israeli-occupied West Bank and the rest of the region, has been in crisis since Israel accused 12 of its 13,000 staff in Gaza of being involved in an attack on Israel on October 7, sparking war in the Palestinian enclave.

The allegations prompted several countries, including the United States, to stop funding. However, many countries, including Canada, Australia, Finland, and Sweden, have continued their contribution.

"I hope more of them come back," Lazzarini said of the donors.

Earlier, Israel had told the United Nations it would no longer approve of the UNRWA food convoy to the north of Gaza, where hunger will most likely occur in May, according to a UN-backed report published last week. An Israeli government spokesman said on Monday Israel would stop cooperating with UNRWA in Gaza.

Lazzarini described Israel's decision not to allow UNRWA food convoys to northern Gaza, designed to "prevent people who are in danger of death" to survive.

"Plan B is to return to plan A. The most important thing is that the convoy has access to the north," explained Lazzarini.

"We will definitely find a partnership, who else can do it on our behalf. Our focus is on people who are in danger of death right now in northern Gaza," he said.