Statement on Australia's Decision to Reinstate Funding to UNRWA
AUSTRALIA REINSTATES FUNDING TO UNRWA
The General Delegation of Palestine to Australia, Aotearoa New Zealand and the Pacific welcomes the decision of the Australian Government to resume funding to UNRWA, announced by Australian Foreign Minister Senator the Hon Penny Wong today. This is a principled and timely step, especially given the increasingly dire humanitarian catastrophe being inflicted against the Palestinian civilian population of Gaza by Israel, the occupying Power, and its ongoing obstruction of life-saving humanitarian assistance from reaching Palestinians in desperate need.
As the only entity with the knowledge, infrastructure and capacity required to effectively distribute desperately-needed humanitarian aid at scale to the Palestinian people in Gaza, UNRWA is truly indispensable. The General Delegation of Palestine recognizes and appreciates the Australian Government’s decision to explicitly acknowledge UNRWA’s integrity, and the vital, lifesaving work that the Agency does. It is our hope that the Australian Government will increase its funding to UNRWA accordingly.
The General Delegation of Palestine also welcomes the additional $6 million total to be provided by the Australian Government to UNICEF and to the new mechanism of the UN Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza.
The General Delegation of Palestine further welcomes Australia’s call for an immediate and enduring humanitarian ceasefire, and hopes that the Australian Government will support an immediate, permanent, and comprehensive ceasefire in order to ensure the unimpeded provision of humanitarian assistance at scale to alleviate the immense suffering and stop the deliberate starvation of our people in Gaza, to save countless innocent lives.