EU foreign policy chief calls for more support for UN Palestinian refugee agency

The EU foreign policy chief on Monday called for more support for the UN Palestinian refugee agency, UNRWA, amid the ongoing Israel attacks on Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

Josep Borrell said on X that he had discussed the humanitarian situation in the region with Phillippe Lazzarini, the agency’s head, and his UN staff.

The top EU diplomat said 85% of Gazans have been displaced, hundreds of thousands were left without shelter, and 150 UNRWA staffers have been killed.

"We need to preserve and continue supporting UNRWA as essential service provider to the Palestinians," Borrell stressed.

Due to the Israeli onslaught, most of the enclave’s population of more than 2.2 million people remains under siege and bombardment, displaced, and short of food and basic necessities.

Israel has launched air and ground attacks on the Gaza Strip since a cross-border attack by Palestinian resistance group Hamas on Oct. 7.

At least 23,084 Palestinians have since been killed and 58,926 others injured, according to Gaza’s health authorities, while nearly 1,200 Israelis are believed to have been killed in the Hamas attack.​​​​​​​