GENEVA, 12 Feb. - (ANA) - - Since 1950, the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) has contributed to the welfare and human development of Palestine refugees, defined as “persons whose normal place of residence was Palestine during the period 1 June 1946 to 15 May 1948, and who lost both home and means of livelihood as a result of the 1948 war”.

 

- The agency operates in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Established by a UN General Assembly resolution, UNRWA is funded almost entirely through voluntary contributions from UN Member States.

 

- UNRWA has long faced misinformation and disinformation, including about its staff and operations. This has intensified since the war in Gaza began on 7 October 2023.

 

- An example is the claim that the UN agencies that deliver humanitarian assistance in crisis zones across the globe would be better placed to do the work currently carried out by UNRWA.

 

- In fact, UNRWA’s established infrastructure – the agency directly manages critical public-like services (schools, health centres, social protection), relying on 30,000 staff members, most of them Palestine refugees – and its cost-effectiveness have no equivalent elsewhere in the UN.   - (ANA) -

 

 

AB/ANA/03 February 2025 - - -