UNRWA Set to Lose $65 Million, Documents Show (www.nytimes.com)

submitted 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago) by breakfastmtn@lemmy.ca to c/world@lemmy.world

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The United Nations Relief and Works Agency, the main aid agency in Gaza, is set to lose $65 million by the end of February as donors’ funding cuts begin to kick in, according to internal accounting documents reviewed by The New York Times.

At least 18 states or institutions, including many of the agency’s biggest funders, announced they were suspending their donations to the agency, known as UNRWA, after accusations emerged last month that several employees participated in the Hamas-led attack on Israel on Oct. 7.

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[-] themeatbridge@lemmy.world 31 points 9 months ago

I understand not wanting to fund terrorists. Whether the number of terrorists in UNRWA justifies cutting off support or not is moot. We've done it.

But desperate people with no hope are easy recruits for terrorist organizations. If you don't trust UNRWA, you can't just cut off aid to the region and wipe the dust from your hands like you fixed something. It much be replaced with something.

Caring for the people in need in Gaza is not charity. It's self defense. It is an investment in peace. Every nickel we saved in UNRWA funding is 10 dollars in war and rebuilding we have to spend later.

[-] ghostdoggtv@lemmy.world 17 points 9 months ago

Worse.

Dip shit Israel.

Who do they thing is going to fill the void left when UNRWA is out of the picture? Palestineans are gonna need HAMAS to get the same services.

Israel is doing this to themselves.

[+] eporetsky@lemmy.world -18 points 9 months ago

Funding UNRWA is the primary factor perpetuating this conflict. I agree that aid should come, ideally from some neutral unbiased side, but funding UNRWA is the opposite of an investment in peace

[-] NoneOfUrBusiness@kbin.social 18 points 9 months ago

How is UNRWA perpetuating anything? The conflict isn't ending because Israel doesn't want Palestine to have a state. They've been pretty clear about that.

[-] hglman@lemmy.ml 15 points 9 months ago

If everyone starves to death they cant keep fighting duh /s

[+] Pamasich@kbin.social -10 points 9 months ago

They teach antisemitism and terrorism.

I've found this article that talks about it (among some other reasons), though I've also seen it on other sites.

A recent report by the watchdog group IMPACT-se highlighted that UNRWA's educational materials, based on the Palestinian Authority (PA) curriculum, contain antisemitic content and celebrate violence and martyrdom-jihadist culture.

UNRWA has a significant position in educating almost 545,000 Palestinian children across the Middle East.

The IMPACT-se report examined educational materials used in UNRWA schools, particularly in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem, where the PA curriculum is adopted.

The PA curriculum, which has been under scrutiny since its 2016 revision, is found to contain – like it did before its revision – antisemitic content and the promotion of violence, jihad, and ‘martyrdom’ culture, while omitting teachings of peace and coexistence. UNRWA, while not producing its own curriculum, supplements the host country’s curriculum with additional materials. Despite pledges to counter-act calls for violence by UNRWA, the report found a disturbing failure to do so.

More than 80 UNRWA teachers and staff across more than 30 schools have been caught distributing hateful content in their textbooks.

According to UN Watch: “Teachers and schools at the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, which runs education and social services for Palestinians, regularly call to murder Jews, and create teaching materials that glorify terrorism, encourage martyrdom, demonize Israelis and incite antisemitism.”

[-] NoneOfUrBusiness@kbin.social 10 points 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago)

I won't engage with you any further, but I'm curious how you expect Gazans to sing peace's praises when Israel on the other side of the border keeps electing PMs who campaign on denying Palestinians their right to self-determination (and food. And water. And housing. And existence in general).

[-] Pamasich@kbin.social -4 points 9 months ago

but I'm curious how you expect Gazans to sing peace's praises

I don't, I only answered your question ("How is UNRWA perpetuating anything?"). Most of which was quoted from an article I linked.

I'm not the original poster you originally replied to. I actually agree with what you say about Israel perpetuating the conflict too, probably more. But UNRWA is undeniably doing its part too.

[-] NoneOfUrBusiness@kbin.social 5 points 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago)

But UNRWA is undeniably doing its part too.

Not really. That's Gazans being rightfully mad at Israel. I mean there's not much you can do to make Gazans pretend to be peace-loving hippies inside classrooms. Like imagine going "we should strive for peace, violence is bad" to people who had their homes destroyed and families murdered by Israel. Idk about you but even if I bought the peace stuff (not happening with the current Israeli political landscape and it's not getting better) I wouldn't have the heart to preach that stuff in front of kids the IDF orphaned.

[-] NoIWontPickaName@kbin.social 5 points 9 months ago

You should really look into impact, they are a heavily biased organization and started by an extremely pro Israel person.

They do have facts, but they hide and disguise when they don’t

[-] nonailsleft@lemm.ee 7 points 9 months ago

This episode has left me wondering why humanitarian aid to Gaza seems to mostly come from 'the West'. Is there a reason the Arab states don't want to pick up the tab, at least temporarily? This sounds like chump change on a nation level...

[-] NoneOfUrBusiness@kbin.social 13 points 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago)

They do, though. A lot of Palestinian aid comes from Arab states.

[-] nonailsleft@lemm.ee 1 points 9 months ago

Do you have a source?

I just looked at UNRWA's donor list and it seems to agree with me.

Sweden alone pays more than Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait combined

[-] NoneOfUrBusiness@kbin.social 14 points 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_aid_to_Palestinians#Major_donors

Not all aid to Palestinians goes through UNRWA.

[-] IndustryStandard@lemmy.world 10 points 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago)

Qatar has been building a lot of hospitals in Gaza among other aid. Many of them now destroyed by Israel.

[-] LarmyOfLone@lemm.ee 5 points 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago)

The countries that cut the funding after the ICJ ordered to provide humanitarian aid to the 1.5 refugees - they are now complicit in the coming genocide.

They always scream when Israeli is accused of war crimes that we should wait for an investigation. But when the Israeli regime that has been shown to lie incessantly these past months accuses UNRWA - and on the same day of the ICJ ruling, they immediately hop to.

It is just disgusting. And for the first time in my life I'm deeply ashamed of my country.

[-] autotldr@lemmings.world 3 points 9 months ago

This is the best summary I could come up with:

UNRWA’s operation plays a critical role in the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

More than 80 percent of Gaza’s 2.2 million people have been displaced by the war, and more than half of the population are now sheltering in repurposed schools and centers run by the agency.

UNRWA also oversees the distribution of the meager supplies of aid that arrive each day to Gaza by truck.

Already, aid agencies are warning of famine amid profound food shortages and the collapse of the health care system.

Since donor states began suspending their funds, the agency has received an unusually high number of private donations from individual citizens seeking to fill the void.

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this post was submitted on 06 Feb 2024

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