EU Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarčič on Tuesday called for support for UN Palestinian Relief and Works Agency UNRWA, which Israel has accused of harbouring Hamas fighters, in view of the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip.
"I call on the donors to support UNRWA – the #Palestinian refugees' lifeline," Lenarčič wrote on X, formerly Twitter. The aid commissioner welcomed an investigative report into the UNRWA published on Monday, which he said underlined "the Agency's significant number of compliance systems in place as well as recommendations for their further upgrade."
In the report presented in New York, independent experts concluded that UNRWA had established a number of "robust" mechanisms to ensure that the principle of neutrality was upheld. The report also stressed that there was room for improvement.
UNRWA, the main humanitarian provider in Gaza, faced a major crisis after Israel accused a dozen of its employees of being involved in the October 7 attacks that left some 1,200 people dead and triggered the Gaza war.
Israel still has not presented conclusive evidence to back the claims.
Several employees were dismissed in the wake of the accusations. In the days and weeks that followed, a number of donor countries suspended or paused funding. The US has not yet resumed payments.
David Satterfield, US President Joe Biden's special envoy for humanitarian issues in the Middle East, said on Tuesday that Israel must do more to facilitate the flow of humanitarian assistance into Gaza and to enable its safe distribution.
"The risk of famine throughout Gaza is very high, especially in the north. We've been very clear: Israel must do everything possible to facilitate efforts to avert famine in Gaza," he said.