UNRWA head calls on Israel to lift Gaza siege

The Commissioner General of the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) called on Sunday for Israel to lift its eight-year siege of the Gaza Strip. Speaking at the opening ceremony of the Kuza’a Primary School for Girls in Khan Yunis, Pierre Krähenbühl said that the siege is “no longer acceptable”.

Kuza’a Primary is the first school in the Gaza Strip to be renovated and reopened following last summer’s Israeli offensive against the Palestinians in Gaza. More than 2,260 Palestinians were killed and around 11,000 others were injured during the war. Thousands of residential, medical, educational and NGOs buildings were destroyed by the Israelis.

“The continuation of the Israeli siege on Gaza along with the delay of reconstructing what the latest Israeli offensive caused raises concerns,” said Krähenbühl. “This situation must change.” He called for an end to the “illegal and illegitimate” blockade.

“My message when I meet the donors is that we cannot stop helping the Gaza Strip,” he added. “It is not acceptable to see tens of thousands of graduates in need of work. If pledges are not fulfilled, this means that disappointment and anger will increase in Gaza; the international community has to know this.”

The UNRWA chief stressed that his organisation keeps appealing for the world to commit to pledges made in the Donor Conference held at the end of the last year. A total of $5.4 billion was pledged in Cairo, with $2.6 billion earmarked for reconstruction work in Gaza. However, seven months since the Israeli war ended thousands of Palestinians are still displaced while they wait for reconstruction to begin.