English
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced yesterday that it is suspending contributions to the Palestinian Refugee Agency (UNRWA) - an institution that operates within the UN (United Nations Organization) - following the allegations regarding the involvement of some employees of that agency in the Hamas attacks of October 7, 2023 on Israel. Ministry officials specify that "the needs of Palestinian civilians will continue to be a priority for Romania" and that the MFA will maintain collaboration with its partners, including at the European level.
The press release issued by the ministry states: "The MAE has taken note with the utmost concern of the recent serious allegations regarding the alleged involvement of some staff members of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East - UNRWA - in the attacks terrorist attacks by Hamas against Israel since October 7, 2023. These allegations must be the subject of immediate and thorough UN investigations. We welcome the quick reaction of the UNRWA management to terminate the contracts of the persons concerned with immediate effect, and we express our full confidence that the investigations started by the UN, which are also under the attention of the Secretary General of the organization, will clarify the situation in the shortest possible time. Until the investigation is completed, MFA will not launch procedures for new voluntary contributions to UNRWA. The needs of Palestinian civilians will continue to be a priority for Romania, and we will continue to coordinate with our partners, including at the European level."
The MFA's decision came after yesterday the European Commission through the European Directorate General for Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO) announced that although the humanitarian aid given to the Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank will continue unabated through partner organizations, "currently , no additional funding is foreseen for UNRWA until the end of February".
The press release issued by the institution in Brussels states: "The European Commission will determine the future funding decisions for UNRWA in the light of the very serious allegations made on January 24 regarding the involvement of the agency's personnel in the atrocious attacks of October 7." The Commission will review the matter in light of the outcome of the investigation launched by the UN. We expect UNRWA to accept an audit by independent external experts appointed by the European Union, which will aim to evaluate the support provided, focusing in particular on the control systems necessary to prevent the possible involvement of agency personnel in terrorist activities. We also expect a strengthening of UNRWA's Department of Internal Investigations (DIOS) and (...) an analysis of all UNRWA personnel, which will prove that they were not involved in the attacks of 7 October 2023".
The European Commission's statement comes after UNRWA announced, last Friday, that it had opened an investigation into several employees suspected of involvement in the attacks of October 7, 2023, and specified that it had stopped working with them. According to the spokesman of the State Department in Washington, Matthew Miller, it would be about 12 UNRWA employees who would have been involved in the attack launched by Hamas on October 7, 2023 in Israel.
Following the launch of the investigation, ten countries announced by yesterday that they were suspending funding for the UN agency. These are Austria, Japan, USA, Canada, Australia, Italy, UK, Finland, Netherlands and Germany.
We note that last year the European Parliament adopted a resolution requesting the European Commission to check what happens to the financial support offered to the Palestinians, who are the final beneficiaries and whether the infrastructure investments made with European money are located in the territories controlled by the Palestinians.
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