UNRWA resumes services to Palestine refugees in West Bank

After four months of disruption, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) announced on Friday that it had resumed its service in the occupied West Bank, according to a statement.

“We are relieved that UNRWA is now able to restart providing services to the refugee communities across the West Bank,” confirmed Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA commissioner-general.

Lazzarini stated that Palestinian refugees had been: “Severely impacted by the strike, which started in March over a work dispute with the West Bank Staff Union and a strike.”

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“Our top priority right now is to reopen 90 UNRWA schools, so that more than 40,000 children who were on the verge of losing a whole school year and are at risk of dropping out will be able to catch up on education losses and move to the next levels,” Lazzarini explained.

The resumption of services came following lengthy discussions with several parties over the past months, the UNRWA statement noted.

“I would like to pay tribute to all those who helped and supported us reach a resolution of the disruptive situation,” Lazzarini expressed.

He added: “In particular, I would like to acknowledge the exceptional contribution of the UNRWA West Bank team led by Adam Bouloukos, the Director of UNRWA West Bank Affairs, Palestinian staff who did not go on strike and international staff who helped manage the crisis. My colleagues showed extraordinary commitment to UNRWA and to Palestine Refugees throughout the strike.”

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