Montreal Canada – Canada has announced it is lifting a freeze on funding for the United Nations Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA), after facing harsh criticism for cutting aid during Israel’s war in Gaza.
In a statement released Friday, Canadian International Development Minister Ahmed Hussen said the government was “resuming funding to UNRWA so that it can do more to meet the urgent needs of Palestinian civilians.”
Canada joined the United States and several other countries in cutting funding to UNRWA in late January, after Israel accused a dozen of the agency’s more than 13,000 employees in Gaza of participating in to a Hamas attack on October 7.
UNRWA immediately dismissed the employees in question and announced that it was launching an investigation into the allegations, which it described as “shocking” and “serious.” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also appointed an independent commission to investigate.
Israel, however, has not provided any concrete evidence to support its allegations. Canadian broadcaster CBC News also reported in early February that Canada had not seen any intelligence supporting the claim before deciding to cut funding.
The decision to cut funding for UNRWA – which relies on government contributions to finance its operations in the occupied Palestinian territories, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon – immediately sparked concerns and calls from rights advocates. rights to reconsider this decision.
UNRWA is also the main agency providing essential humanitarian supplies to Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, where Israel’s continued bombing and siege have killed more than 30,000 people and led to widespread famine and disease.
Humanitarian groups have warned that cutting UNRWA funding would have disastrous repercussions for Palestinians in Gaza and urged donor countries to reverse their decision.
Since then, the situation in the Gaza Strip has further deteriorated, as Israeli military attacks continue. A dozen Palestinian children have died in recent weeks due to lack of food and water in Gaza, according to health authorities in the coastal enclave.
“Reckless political decision”
Canadian human rights advocates on Friday afternoon welcomed the government’s decision to lift the freeze on UNRWA funding, but stressed that the money should not have been cut in the first place.
“Resuming aid to UNRWA is a much-needed decision, and it would not have been possible without the important advocacy of civil society,” said Thomas Woodley, president of the advocacy group Canadians for Justice and peace in the Middle East.
“Minister Hussen’s cancellation of funding was a reckless political decision that should never have been made. Canada’s irresponsible actions threatened to collapse the humanitarian infrastructure in Gaza, putting the lives of millions at risk,” Woodley said in a statement.
“Canada must significantly increase funding to UNRWA to compensate for the harm its actions have caused to the people of Gaza. »
The government paid $66.5 million (C$90 million) to UNRWA between 2019 and mid-2023. Last June, Ottawa also announced it would provide up to $74 million (C$100 million) to the agency over four years to help fund education, health care and other services .
Canadian media reported that the next installment of this funding – approximately $18 million (C$25 million) – would be due in April.
Furthermore, the head of the National Council of Canadian Muslims also noted Friday that “there is no other agency capable of replicating the central role of UNRWA in the humanitarian response in Gaza.”
“While the funding should not have been cut off in the first place, the government has made the right decision today by renewing and increasing the funding,” the group’s CEO, Stephen Brown, said in a statement.
Pressure on Trudeau
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government had come under pressure from pro-Israel lobby groups to maintain the UNRWA funding freeze. Members of Trudeau’s Liberal Party also urged him to withhold the funds.
Liberal pro-Israel lawmakers Anthony Housefather and Marco Mendicino said in a letter released Thursday, they recommended “that Canada work closely with the United States and other allies.”
They urged the government “to bring in other partners and create new humanitarian aid vehicles that will meaningfully reach civilians in Gaza in the short term.”
But experts and humanitarian groups said UNRWA was best placed to provide much-needed assistance to Palestinians in Gaza.
At a press conference Friday afternoon, Hussen said the decision to resume funding was “a recognition of the important and serious processes the United Nations has undertaken to resolve UNRWA’s problems.”
It also comes in recognition of the “crucial role that UNRWA plays in providing much-needed support to more than two million Palestinians in Gaza, as well as… millions more in the wider region,” Hussen said to journalists.
Palestinians in Gaza are starving in catastrophic conditions. The need for life-saving assistance has never been more urgent.
Canada’s announcement today 🇨🇦 to resume funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) will save lives.
There are no more… pic.twitter.com/lYQalSibi1
– NCCM (@nccm) March 8, 2024