UN humanitarian coordinator says no organization can replace UNRWA

By Iclal Turan

WASHINGTON (AA) - The UN's new humanitarian coordinator said Tuesday that no organization can replace or substitute the "tremendous capacity" of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).

"I think you've heard the Secretary-General and other agencies, and they've been very clear. At the moment, beyond political decisions, which are GA (General Assembly) bound, there is no way any organization can replace or substitute the tremendous capacity, the fabric of UNRWA, their ability and their knowledge of the population in Gaza," Sigrid Kaag, the United Nations Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza, said during a news conference following a closed session on Gaza at the UN Security Council.

Some of UNRWA's staff were allegedly involved in the cross-border attack on Israel by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7.

At least 12 countries — Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Canada, Finland, Australia, the UK, the Netherlands, the US, France, Austria and Japan — have suspended funding for UNRWA, which was established in 1949 to help Palestinian refugees across the Middle East.

UNRWA said it terminated contracts with several employees following the Israeli allegations.

The main issues discussed during the UN Security Council session were supply routes to Gaza and distribution across the enclave as well as the establishment of the UN mechanism, according to Kaag.

"This is not about counting trucks," she said. "This is about volume, quality, speed and continuous delivery of humanitarian and commercial goods to reach the civilians of Gaza, and the mechanism went up and running and can really help facilitate that. It helps us to track, it helps us to enhance the transparency that we know what's coming in…It helps with the verification and obviously to know if it really reached the civilian population," she added.