UNRWA, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, was established by the UN in 1949 with the aim "to carry out direct relief and works programs for Palestine refugees".
It started operations on 1 May 1950.
One year later, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) was established to address refugee issues on a global scale. However, due to pressure from Arab states, UNRWA retained sole responsibility for Palestinian refugees. As a result, it is the only refugee agency in the world dedicated to a specific population.
UNRWA operates in 58 refugee camps across Gaza, the West Bank, East Jerusalem, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria, with some 5.9 million Palestinian refugees eligible for their services.
It's not only one of the UN's largest programs, with over 30,000 employees worldwide, but also the primary humanitarian agency in Gaza and one of the biggest employers in the region with 13,000 people, mostly Palestinians, on staff.
What is UNRWA's purpose?
Initially, UNRWA's primary goal was to help resettle Palestinians, about 700,000 of whom fled or were driven from their homes following the war surrounding the founding of Israel in 1948.
However, after many of them resisted permanent resettlement and some host countries refused their full integration, UNRWA shifted its main activity to other programs.
The leading service is education, with about 60 per cent of its total annual budget spent supporting some 700 schools, vocational training centres and teacher training institutions.
Other services include health care, relief and social assistance, emergency operations, and refugee camp rebuilding.
Who pays for UNRWA's services?
UNRWA relies mainly on voluntary contributions from UN member states, supplemented by some funding from the regular budget of the UN for international staffing costs.
In 2022, the United States donated US$344 million ($524 million), making it the largest contributor to UNRWA. Germany was the second-largest donor, giving $190 million euros ($312 million) in 2022.
The Australian government allocated $20 million in funding for UNRWA for the 2023-24 financial year, the same amount it allocated in 2022-23.
This week, over a dozen countries, including the US, Germany, Australia, Canada, Italy, the UK and Japan said they would pause financial support for UNRWA following allegations from Israel that some of its workers were involved in the 7 October attack on Israel.
The leading UNRWA service is education. Source: Getty / Anadolu
UNRWA said on Monday it would not be able to continue operations in Gaza and across the region beyond the end of February if funding was not resumed.
What are the past and current allegations against UNRWA?
A six-page Israeli dossier, seen by Reuters, alleges some UNRWA employees, including teachers, have doubled as Hamas or Islamic Jihad militants. It has names and pictures for 11 of them.
Philippe Lazzarini, the UNRWA commissioner-general, said on Friday the workers had been fired and the agency would launch an investigation.
Philippe Lazzarini said any UNRWA staff found to have been involved in the Hamas attacks will face accountability. Source: AAP / Salvatore Di Nolfi
In the past, UNRWA schools faced criticism that their textbooks contributed to radicalisation. In a 2019 US State Department report, 3.1 per cent of the textbooks were identified as having anti-Israel and other biases, with no instances of incitement reported.
In 2018, former US President Donald Trump terminated all US funding to UNRWA, citing its "irredeemably flawed operation" and its "endlessly and exponentially expanding community of entitled beneficiaries".
After the Biden administration took office, it restored aid but with some new conditions for UNRWA, including maintaining neutrality and preventing the entry of weapons into its facilities.
What was the response to the funding freeze?
Writing on X, Israeli foreign minister Israel Katz commended "the US government for its decision to cease funding to UNRWA," saying Israel had "been warning for years: UNRWA perpetuates the refugee issue, obstructs peace and serves as a civilian arm of Hamas in Gaza".
Katz cancelled meetings planned for this week between ministry officials and UNRWA head Lazzarini.
The US said it had paused US$300,000 ($457,000) in funding to UNWRA pending an investigation.
UN secretary-general António Guterres on Sunday that suspended funding to UNRWA, urging them to reconsider their decisions.
"I strongly appeal to the governments that have suspended their contributions to, at least, guarantee the continuity of UNRWA's operations," he said.
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres visiting the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing into Gaza in October. Source: AFP / Kerolos Salah/via Getty Images
Jordan's deputy prime minister, Ayman Safadi, said on X: "UNRWA is the lifeline for over 2 million Palestinians facing starvation in Gaza. It shouldn't be collectively punished upon allegations against 12 persons out of its 13,000 staff."
Norway, a major donor of UNRWA, has pledged to maintain its funding. On Sunday, Jan Egeland, secretary-general of the Norwegian Refugee Council, appealed to other countries.
"UNRWA's lifesaving aid in Gaza threatened by donors recklessly suspending aid ... Donors, do not starve children for the sins of a few individual aid workers," Egeland said.
- With additional reporting by Reuters.
