Belgium reaffirms support for UNRWA
The Belgian government has reaffirmed its financial support for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), outgoing Development minister Caroline Gennez announced on Friday.
No additional budget has been allocated, but funding for the period 2024-2026 was officially set at a donor conference in New York on Friday.
The government is releasing 16.5 million euros this year for the organisation's general fund, which means it can choose where and how the aid is spent. For 2025 and 2026, 14 million euros has so far been allocated.
Funding for the agency has been under pressure since several major donors, including the US, pulled out after Israel accused it of maintaining links with Hamas.
Belgium decided not to suspend funding to the organisation. Independent investigations later found that Israel had failed to prove that UNRWA staff were linked to Hamas.
"Belgium reaffirms its political and financial support to UNRWA for the coming years and calls on other countries to do the same," Gennez said. "In the frankly catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza, UNRWA means the difference between life and death for tens of thousands of Palestinians."
© PHOTO SAID KHATIB / AFP
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