Beirut Palestinians Protest UNRWA Fund Suspension

On Tuesday, a group of Palestinians assembled in front of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) office in Beirut, protesting the suspension of funding to the UN agency dedicated to Palestinian refugees. This suspension came after the United States, Germany, Japan, and other key donors halted their financial support following Israel’s allegations that some UNRWA staff were involved in the Hamas attack on October 7.

The demonstrators, holding signs depicting the Israeli bombardment of Gaza, called for the reinstatement of funding for UNRWA. Their posters conveyed messages about the importance of UNRWA funding for the future of Palestinian refugees, with one elderly woman’s sign reading, “UNRWA, my right until I return.” The protesters also advocated for the rehiring of staff members in Gaza who were dismissed over accusations of participating in the October 7 attack.

Aid organizations have criticized the funding suspension, highlighting the worsening humanitarian crisis and potential famine in Gaza. Established in the wake of the 1948 war, UNRWA was created to assist the roughly 700,000 Palestinians who fled or were expelled from what is now Israel. Palestinians claim the right of return for these refugees and their descendants, now numbering nearly 6 million across the Middle East. However, Israel opposes this right, fearing it would lead to a Palestinian majority within its borders. The refugee issue remains a key obstacle in the stalled peace process.

UNRWA operates various programs in the region, including schools, health clinics, infrastructure projects, and aid programs in densely populated refugee camps in Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan. In Gaza alone, where about 85% of the 2.3 million population have been displaced, over 1 million people rely on UNRWA facilities for shelter.

Israel has long criticized UNRWA, accusing it of collusion with Hamas and perpetuating the Palestinian refugee crisis. The agency denies these accusations and asserts it acted promptly against employees implicated in the attack. Despite this, the United States and other Western nations, contributing over half of UNRWA’s 2022 budget, suspended their funding.

The U.S., UNRWA’s largest donor, provided $340 million in 2022. Along with the U.K., Canada, Australia, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and Finland, these nations supplied nearly 60% of the agency’s budget.

UNRWA’s Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini expressed concern on a social media platform, formerly known as Twitter, about the dire situation in Gaza, stating that the suspension of aid, based on the alleged actions of a few, comes at a time when the needs in the war-torn region are escalating, and famine is a looming threat.