Canada announces resumption of funding for United Nations relief agency assisting Palestinians

Canada resumes funding for UNRWA citing the critical situation on the ground.

Following Israel’s accusation that 12 UNRWA employees were involved in the Oct. 7 attack, the relief agency dismissed 10 of the accused while the remaining two were later confirmed deceased, according to UNRWA.

In addition to lifting the funding suspension for UNRWA, the Canadian government pledges $100,000 to a charity in Jordan for purchasing supplies destined for Gaza, including through Jordanian airdrops.

Furthermore, the Canadian Armed Forces will supply the Jordanian air force with around 300 cargo parachutes to support humanitarian aid airdrops.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre criticized Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s shift on UNRWA funding in a social media post on Friday.

“Trudeau ‘paused’ UNRWA funding due to terrorist ties and revelations of employee involvement in the October 7th attacks,” Poilievre wrote. “A month later, he flip-flops. His next step: he will send out his MPs from Jewish ridings to criticize the latest decision so that Liberals can be all things to all people.”

Canada’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Bob Rae, echoed International Development Minister Ahmed Hussen’s explanation for resuming Canadian funding to UNRWA during an interview with CBC Radio’s The House scheduled to air on Saturday.

When asked by host Catherine Cullen if Canada’s decision to restore funding should be seen as an exoneration of UNRWA, Rae responded, “Not at all.”

“There’s only been a partial report from the first investigation and that investigation has not yet had the opportunity to meet with the Government of Israel,” he said. “The secretary general wrote to the government of Israel at the end of January asking for full cooperation with this UN investigation team and, to this point, the Israeli government has not shared any detailed information with respect to the original allegations of the 12 employees.

“We decided that this is taking a very long time. We can’t wait now because of the situation on the ground. Children are starving. People are dying. There is not enough food getting in. That must be the priority for everybody, including Israel.”

 

The United Nations says approximately 500,000 Palestinians in Gaza are facing catastrophic levels of food insecurity. An estimated 1.7 million Palestinians are internally displaced within the besieged enclave.

Israel insists that UNRWA must be replaced as the primary aid agency for Palestinians. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed last month that the relief agency has been “totally infiltrated” by Hamas.

Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, Israel’s chief military spokesperson, escalated accusations against UNRWA on Monday, claiming at a press conference that 450 of the agency’s employees were members of militant groups in Gaza. Hagari did not provide names or other evidence to support the claim.

On Tuesday, the relief agency’s Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini accused Israel on the floor of the UN General Assembly of conducting a “deliberate and concerted campaign to undermine [UNRWA’s] operations and ultimately end them.”

UNRWA says it employs more than 30,000 employees in total, 13,000 of whom are in Gaza.