Qatar pledges $100 million in aid for Gaza humanitarian crisis

The State of Qatar announced on Thursday that it would provide $100 million to meet the humanitarian needs in Gaza, including support for The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).

This came during a speech delivered by the Qatari Minister of State for International Cooperation Lolwah Al-Khater during a meeting on supporting UNRWA on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.

Al-Khater stressed that this amount would cover various areas of humanitarian response, including support for UNRWA, which plays a fundamental role in delivering humanitarian aid to Gaza.

Al-Khater pointed out that, at the beginning of this year, the State of Qatar had pledged to provide $25 million to the agency and will continue to support it.

The Qatari minister expressed that her country is proud to be among the first countries to sign the Statement of Shared Commitments on UNRWA and call all countries to join these pledges.

READ: Agreement between PA, occupation to dismantle explosives planted by West Bank resistance

She also stressed that Qatar would continue to support UNRWA in alleviating the suffering of Palestinians and provide humanitarian assistance: “In line with the principle of solidarity with our brothers in Palestine.”

In addition, the Qatari minister denounced any measures that aim to add any international organisation, including UNRWA, to the list of terrorist organisations, noting: “The systematic measures by Israel against the agency require the international community to take measures to support UNRWA.”

Al-Khater praised UNRWA staff’s work, describing it as “heroic”, and shared her condolences to its employees who were killed during the ongoing Israeli war on Gaza.

UNRWA is a UN organisation established in 1949 to provide emergency relief to Palestinian refugees after the occupation of their country.

Its annual expenses amount to $1.4 billion, the largest share of which covers the salaries of its 30,000 employees in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.

UNRWA is facing a fierce campaign by Israel, which seeks to stop its activities in the occupied Palestinian territories. The Israeli Knesset approved three bills in their first reading last July, classifying the agency as a terrorist organisation.

READ: Israel claims it killed Hezbollah leader Nasrallah