– Western countries have been slower to resume funding than they were in pulling the plug, says Lazzarini
– Lazzarini hopeful findings of independent review report for UN will make donors ‘feel reassured’
– Israeli campaign against UNRWA will continue because the real objective is ‘to strip Palestinians of refugee status,’ says Lazzarini
GENEVA
The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) is looking for contributions from new donors, including Arab nations, to fill the gap created by the halt in US funding, the agency’s head Philippe Lazzarini has told Anadolu.
The US and its Western allies initially suspended funding to UNRWA in January over Israel’s unproven allegations that some agency staff were involved in the Oct. 7 Hamas attack.
While others such as the EU, Canada and Sweden have since backtracked and plan to resume funding, the US has doubled down on its stance, with a new spending bill passed by Congress last month banning any payments to UNRWA until March 2025.
The US was UNRWA’s largest donor, providing between $300 and $400 million annually, and Lazzarini believes its decision to freeze funding is “certainly fueled and driven by domestic politics.”
“The gap left behind by the US is equivalent to about $180 million when it comes to the core budget, plus an additional $200 million donor when it comes to the emergency appeal,” Lazzarini told Anadolu in an interview in Geneva.
He said the agency has been and will continue to “reach out to new potential donors,” while also pushing traditional ones to not only maintain, but also increase their contributions.
“We’ll also be looking at the Arab world,” he said.
“We have seen some significant contributions there, from Algeria, Iraq, Kuwait, UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, to name a few. But earlier we also had some contribution from Oman, and even a host country, Jordan.”
Additionally, he said some European nations such as Spain, Belgium, Portugal and Norway have conveyed their intent to maintain and bolster their donations.
As of now, UNRWA has enough to continue operations until the end of June, he said, but stressed that him and other officials will have to “redouble efforts” to mobilize enough resources to keep it running until the end of the year.
Slower ‘domino effect’
Some major donors have yet to review their decision to cut funding to UNRWA, including countries such as the UK, Austria and Switzerland, according to Lazzarini.
That is despite the findings of an independent review report for the UN, led by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna, who said last week that Israel is yet to provide credible evidence to back its allegations against UNRWA staff.
The report, prepared after extensive field visits and engagement with various stakeholders across several regions since mid-February, also particularly emphasized the agency’s neutrality.
Lazzarini said countries have been slower to resume funding than they were in pulling the plug, pointing out that 16 nations stopped donations within 48 hours after Israel first came out with its accusations against UNRWA personnel.
“Donors came back, slowly but surely, three months later,” he said.
“The domino effect has not been as quick. But it is true that once a group of countries started to review their position, others have followed.”
Lazzarini said Colonna’s report underlined just how “essential, indispensable and irreplaceable” UNRWA is in humanitarian efforts for Palestinians, as well as its “solid and robust mechanisms to handle neutrality.”
“I’m confident that, with this report, our traditional partners and donors will feel reassured and resume their partnerships with the agency,” he said.
‘Real objective is to strip Palestinians of refugee status’
Israel is facing a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its ongoing assault on Gaza, which has now killed nearly 34,600 Palestinians, the vast majority being women and children, and wounded over 77,800.
It has displaced millions more, around 85% of the population, leaving them facing famine and acute shortages of medical aid and other essentials.
Israeli attacks have also laid waste to large swaths of the besieged enclave, devastating everything from housing to medical facilities, educational institutes, and all sorts of civic infrastructure.
Among the casualties and destroyed infrastructure have been at least 182 UNRWA staff and more than 160 buildings used by the agency, many of them shelters for displaced Palestinians.
Asked whether UNRWA will take legal action against Israel, Lazzarini said there were no such plans, but reiterated his call for the international community to do its part for accountability.
“I have called on member states to, in the future, investigate and seek accountability for the fact that UN staff, UN premises, UN operations have been blatantly disregarded,” he said.
“There have already been statements from member states in New York or at the Security Council, indicating that, indeed, we need to seek accountability for these blatant violations. So, there is an interest from a number of member states.”
Lazzarini, however, expects the campaign targeting UNRWA to continue, reiterating that it is part of a larger Israeli plan against Palestinians.
“The call for the agency to be dismantled will continue. The mantra that the agency perpetuates the refugee status will also certainly continue,” he said.
“The real objective in calling for the dissolvement of the agency is related to the objective to strip Palestinians of refugee status.”
All of this is also perceived by Palestinians as an attempt to “weaken or end” the prospect of a two-state solution, he added.
