Norway has called upon international donors to reinstate their financial contributions to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), following a report that refuted Israel’s claims linking some UNRWA staff to terrorist groups.
Earlier this year, the United States, Britain, and other countries halted their payments to UNRWA based on Israel’s allegations. In contrast, Norway, a significant donor to the organisation, contended that these funding cuts jeopardised the well-being of Gaza’s population.
A neutrality review of the agency, spearheaded by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna, concluded on Monday that Israel had failed to substantiate its accusations that hundreds of UNRWA staff members were affiliated with terrorist groups in Gaza.
“I would now like to call on countries that have still frozen their contributions to UNRWA to resume funding,” stated Norway’s Foreign Minister, Espen Barth Eide.
Additionally, an internal investigation by the UN is probing Israel’s claims that 12 staff members pf the relief organisation participated in the cross-border attacks on October 7, which ignited the conflict in Gaza.
Israel has persistently attempted to equate UNRWA staff with members of Hamas to discredit the organisation. However, Israel has provided no concrete evidence to support these claims.
Furthermore, Israel has been lobbying intensively for the closure of UNRWA, which is the only UN agency specifically mandated to cater to the basic needs of Palestinian refugees. Israel’s argument suggests that if the agency ceases to exist, the refugee issue should also be considered resolved, negating the legitimate right of Palestinian refugees to return to their ancestral lands. Israel has opposed this right of return since the late 1940s, despite its UN membership being contingent upon allowing Palestinian refugees to return to their homes and lands.
“Norway has emphasised that it is unacceptable to punish an entire organisation, with 30,000 employees, and all Palestine refugees for the alleged misdeeds of a small number of the organisation’s employees,” Barth Eide added.
While ten countries have resumed their funding, the United States, Britain, Italy, the Netherlands, Austria, and Lithuania continue to withhold their contributions. A UN spokesperson revealed on Monday that UNRWA’s current funding would sustain its operations until June.