Cash-strapped UN refugee agency asks for more funding

By Qais Abu Samra and Afra Aksoy

RAMALLAH, Palestine

The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) issued an appeal on Tuesday for $800 million to cover its activities in the region.

In a statement, UNRWA Commissioner-General Pierre Krahenbuhl stressed that Palestinian refugees across the region “rely on UNRWA to provide them with life-saving aid, including food, water, shelter and medical assistance”.

The UNRWA provides services to some 5.9 million Palestinian refugees in the Palestinian territories, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.

The sought-for $800 million, Krahenbuhl said, “will allow the agency to continue delivering desperately needed relief to those affected by deepening emergency situations”.

“The agency’s critical financial crisis following the reduction in U.S. funding threatens our ability to deliver these vital services,” he said.

The appeal comes shortly after the U.S. announced plans to withhold $65 million in aid to UNRWA “until further consideration”.

Washington’s total financial contribution to UNRWA last year stood at more than $350 million.