Pakistan concerned over suspension of funding to UN agency for Palestinian refugees

Pakistan, Monday, expressed its “deep” concerns over the decision by some countries to suspend the funding for the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), Anadolu Agency reports.

“The timing of this suspension is deeply troubling as it takes place amidst the ongoing war, displacement and suffering of the people of Gaza who depend on critical aid from UNRWA for their daily survival,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Islamabad noted that the decision to suspend funding in response to harassment against a small group of staff is “unjustifiable”.

“We agree with the UN Secretary-General that UNRWA’s current funding would not be sufficient to meet all the requirements to support the Palestinian people over the next month. It is, therefore, imperative to prioritise the continuity of UNRWA’s operations to sustain the survival of the people of Gaza,” the statement further said.

Pakistan urged all countries that have suspended their funding to reconsider their decision in order to avoid suspension of the Agency’s humanitarian work.

“The lives of the people in Gaza hang in the balance and depend on this crucial support,” it concluded.

Several countries, including the US and Canada, have announced the temporary suspension of new funding to UNRWA, following Israel’s accusation that some of the agency’s employees participated in the attack launched by the Hamas movement on 7 October.

Israel has repeatedly equated UNRWA staff with Hamas members in efforts to discredit them, providing no proof of the claims, while lobbying hard to have UNRWA closed as it is the only UN agency to have a specific mandate to look after the basic needs of Palestinian refugees. If the agency no longer exists, argues Israel, then the refugee issue must no longer exist, and the legitimate right for Palestinian refugees to return to their land will be unnecessary. Israel has denied that right of return since the late 1940s, even though its own membership of the UN was made conditional upon Palestinian refugees being allowed to return to their homes and land.

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