Saudi Arabia announced on Wednesday it will provide $40 million in funding to UNRWA, the UN agency for “Palestinian refugees”, CNN reported.
Dr. Abdullah Al Rabeeah, the supervisor general of the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSRelief), signed an agreement on the matter with UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini.
The funding will provide food for more than 250,000 people and tents for 20,000 families, officials said.
"It is crucial to address the desperate needs of the people in Gaza. KSrelief remains committed to supporting these efforts to deliver humanitarian assistance in this difficult time," Al Rabeeah said in a statement.
In January, the US and a host of other countries announced they would temporarily pause funding to UNRWA.
Those decisions were made after Israel said that 12 UNRWA staff had taken part in Hamas’ October 7 attack. Among other things, Israel said those workers kidnapped a woman, handed out ammunition and actively taking part in the massacre at Kibbutz Be’eri, where 97 people were murdered.
While Lazzarini announced that the UN agency had launched an investigation into the employees in question, he has also insisted he had no knowledge of how deep Hamas is involved in UNRWA.
The UNRWA chief has repeatedly accused Israel of "a deliberate and concerted campaign" aimed at ending the agency’s work.