Montreal Canada – Canada has announced it will lift a funding freeze for the United Nations Palestine Refugee Agency (UNRWA) after the agency came under heavy criticism for cutting aid during Israel's war on Gaza.

IN THE statement On Friday, Canadian International Development Minister Ahmed Hussen said the government was “resuming funding to UNRWA so that more can be done to meet the urgent needs of Palestinian civilians.”

Canada joined the United States and several other countries in cutting funding to UNRWA in late January, after Israel accused a dozen of the agency's more than 13,000 employees in Gaza of involvement in the Hamas attacks on October 7.

UNRWA immediately fired the employees and announced it was launching an investigation into the allegations, which it called “shocking” and “serious.” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has also set up an independent commission to investigate the matter.

But Israel has not provided any specific evidence to support its accusations. Canadian television channel CBC News also did the same thing. reported As of early February, Canada had not seen any interviews confirming this claim before deciding to cut funding.

The decision to cut funding for UNRWA – which relies on government contributions to finance its activities in the occupied territories of Palestine, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon – immediately sparked concerns and calls for a review by human rights activists.

UNRWA is also a key agency providing essential humanitarian supplies to Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, where persistent Israeli bombing and siege have killed more than 30,000 people and caused widespread famine and disease.

Humanitarian groups have warned that cutting UNRWA funding would have a devastating impact on Palestinians in Gaza and urged donor countries to reverse their decision.

Since then, the situation in the Gaza Strip has worsened as Israeli military attacks continue. According to health authorities in the coastal region, at least a dozen Palestinian children have died in recent weeks due to the lack of food and water in Gaza.

“Bad political decision”

Canadian human rights activists on Friday afternoon welcomed the government's decision to lift the freeze on UNRWA funding, but stressed that funding should not be cut.

“Resumption of aid to UNRWA is an essential decision and would not be possible without the essential support of all of civil society,” said Thomas Woodley, president of the advocacy group Canadians for Justice and Justice. peace in the Middle East.

“Minister Hussen’s cancellation of funding was a reckless political decision that should never have been made. “Canada's irresponsible actions threaten to destroy aid infrastructure in Gaza, putting millions of lives at risk,” Woodley said in a statement.

“Canada must significantly increase funding to UNRWA to compensate for the damage caused to the people of Gaza by its actions. »

The head of the National Council of Canadian Muslims also noted that “no other agency can replicate UNRWA's central role in humanitarian assistance to Gaza.”

“While funding should not have stopped completely, the government has made the right decision today by renewing and increasing funding,” the group's chief executive, Stephen Brown, said in a statement.

Pressure on Trudeau

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government faces pressure from pro-Israel lobby groups to maintain the UNRWA funding freeze. Members of Trudeau's Liberal Party also urged him to withhold the funds.

Liberal pro-Israel lawmakers Anthony Housefather and Marco Mendicino he says in a letter Thursday recommending “that Canada work closely with the United States and other allies.”

They called on the government to “utilize alternative partners and create new humanitarian aid tools that will meaningfully reach Gaza's civilian population in the short term.”

But experts and humanitarian groups say UNRWA is best placed to provide much-needed aid to Palestinians in Gaza.

At a press conference Friday afternoon, Hussen said the decision to resume funding “is a recognition of the important and serious process undertaken by the UN to resolve the problems at UNRWA.”

It also recognizes “the crucial role that UNRWA plays in providing much-needed support to more than two million Palestinians in Gaza, as well as… millions more in the wider region,” Hussen told reporters .

Palestinians in Gaza are suffering from starvation in very dire conditions. The need for help to save lives is now increasingly urgent.

Canada's announcement today to resume funding the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) will save countless lives.

No other… pic.twitter.com/lYQalSibi1

– NCCM (@nccm) March 8, 2024