Sweden to cease funding to UNRWA

Sweden says it will cease funding the UN “Palestinian refugee” agency, cites difficulties from Israeli decision to bar the agency.

UNRWA building in Gaza
UNRWA building in GazaAbed Rahim Khatib/Flash 90

Sweden announced on Friday that it would cease funding the UN “Palestinian refugee” agency UNRWA and redirect its humanitarian assistance for Gaza through alternative channels, Reuters reported.

Swedish aid minister Benjamin Dousa cited challenges posed by Israel's plans to ban UNRWA operations in the country as leading to his country’s decision.

Dousa explained that the Israeli ban significantly influenced the decision, as it would complicate the delivery of aid through UNRWA.

"Large parts of UNRWA's operations in Gaza are either going to be severely weakened or completely impossible," Dousa told Reuters. "For the government, the most important thing is that support gets through."

Dousa emphasized that Sweden "in no way" supported Israel's law and had consistently voiced criticism of it.

"Israel must do much more to ensure humanitarian access to Gaza," he added.

In response to the challenges, Sweden plans to increase its overall humanitarian aid to Gaza next year to 800 million Swedish crowns ($72.44 million), up from 451 million crowns this year.

According to Sweden's foreign ministry, the funds will be distributed through several organizations, including the UN World Food Programme (WFP), the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), the UN Populations Fund (UNFPA), and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel expressed gratitude to Dousa for Sweden’s decision to withdraw its support for UNRWA.

"There are worthy and viable alternatives for humanitarian aid, and I appreciate the willingness to listen and adopt a different approach," she said.

The Palestinian Authority’s mission in Stockholm criticized Sweden's decision, stating, "We reject the idea of finding alternatives to UNRWA, which has a special mandate to provide services to Palestinian refugees."

The statement highlighted that “Palestinian refugees” depend on UNRWA for healthcare, education, emergency relief, and other humanitarian assistance.

The Foreign Ministry officially announced last month the cancellation of the 1967 agreement between Israel and UNRWA, which formed the legal basis for relations between the State of Israel and UNRWA.

The announcement followed the Knesset’s approval of the law halting UNRWA's activities in Israel.

UNRWA, which has long been criticized for cooperating with Hamas, has come under increased scrutiny as its workers have been found to have been directly involved in Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.

Israel revealed in January of this year that UNRWA staff participated in the October 7 Hamas attacks. It then presented a dossier showing that the UNRWA workers who participated in the Hamas massacre kidnapped a woman, handed out ammunition and actively took part in the massacre at Kibbutz Be’eri, where 97 people were murdered.

Following the Israeli revelations, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres announced the creation of a review group, headed by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna, to look into the Israeli allegations.

The group, which released its report in April, said it found neutrality-related issues" in UNRWA but also claimed that Israel had yet to provide evidence for allegations that a significant number of its staff were members of terrorist organizations.

(Israel National News' North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Israel National News articles, however, is Israeli time.)