Hamas official: UN decision to halt aid in Gaza has led to widespread anger

A senior leader of Hamas Salah Bardawil said the UN and its Envoy Robert Serry’s decision to halt aid to the victims of the Israeli aggression in Gaza has led to widespread anger in the Strip.

In response to Serry’s accusations that Hamas was behind “assaults on the UNRWA premises in Gaza”, Bardawil told Al-Resalah news website: “Protesters did not go out in vain, they were protesting against the United Nations’ decision to cut off aid to the enclave.”

He added: “Mr Serry should have looked into the serious repercussions of the United Nations’ decision to stop the reconstruction and assistance provided for the victims of the latest Israeli aggression on Gaza instead of distributing accusations.”

Bardawil stressed that the UN envoy who held Hamas responsible for the security and safety of United Nations staff was “attempting to depart from reality”, pointing out that the masses today wanted to tell Serry that they will not accept the UN to become part of the Israeli siege imposed on the Gaza Strip.

He added that Hamas does not support any form of violence or assault on international institutions, “but Serry should think a lot and reconsider the United Nations recent decision”.

The special envoy said yesterday evening that he was carrying out an urgent review of the United Nations’ operations in Gaza in response to the angry demonstrators’ assault on the UN premises in the enclave.

Serry said: “Pending a full transfer of security responsibilities to the legitimate Palestinian Authority, we continue to hold Hamas fully responsible for the security and safety of all United Nations personnel and operations in Gaza.”

Angry Palestinians who were affected by the Israeli aggression in the summer of 2014 yesterday demonstrated in front of the UN headquarters in Gaza to protest against UNRWA’s decision to halt aid provided to them due to lack of funding.