UN chief warns UNRWA funding shortfall threatens aid to 2.6 million Palestinians

U.N. Secretary‑General António Guterres said the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) faces a cash gap of about $100 million and is "at the limit" of its ability to operate. The agency provides food, education, health, social services and shelter to roughly 2.6 million Palestinian refugees in Gaza, the occupied West Bank, East Jerusalem, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.

Guterres appealed to member states for urgent contributions after the United States, UNRWA’s largest donor, suspended funding in January 2024 following Israeli accusations that a small number of agency staff took part in the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attack. An internal U.N. inquiry found nine employees possibly involved, while evidence against ten others was insufficient. The funding cut, along with other donor suspensions, has forced UNRWA to reduce staff hours, cut salaries and leave many international positions vacant.

He warned that additional cuts could push the agency beyond the breaking point, jeopardising its mandate that was renewed by the General Assembly six months ago. Guterres also noted that 390 UNRWA personnel have been killed in Gaza since the conflict began and that the agency is confronting coordinated disinformation, legislative restrictions and diplomatic roadblocks.