What happened?
- An independent review found that Israel has not provided evidence to support allegations of ties between UNRWA employees and terrorist groups.
- The UN Secretary-General accepted the recommendations from the independent review and agreed with UNRWA’s Commissioner-General to develop an action plan for implementation.
- The review praised UNRWA for its advanced approach to neutrality compared to similar organizations.
- Following the review, Germany and other countries plan to resume or continue their cooperation and funding for UNRWA.
What is International media saying:
- The German government has indicated plans to resume cooperation with UNRWA soon, following the positive findings of the review and the example set by other countries, reported by La Vanguardia and Welt.
- The EU Commissioner has expressed support for UNRWA in the Gaza Strip and welcomed the findings of the investigation report, according to Spiegel.
- UNRWA has robust procedures for ensuring neutrality, though there are gaps in implementation such as staff sharing political views and issues with disruptive staff unions, as AP News noted.
- The U.N. Secretary-General has ordered a separate investigation into allegations that 12 UNRWA staff participated in attacks, also reported by AP News.
What is Arab media saying:
- The EU crisis management commissioner has urged international donors to support UNRWA, following the report’s conclusion that found no evidence of staff members belonging to terrorist groups, as reported by Al Jazeera.
- The report called for enhanced support for UNRWA, which it described as a vital lifeline for Palestinian refugees, according to Al Jazeera and Balkans Al Jazeera.
- Norway has also encouraged international donors to resume funding for UNRWA after the report showed that Israel’s allegations were unsupported by evidence, as per Al Jazeera.
What is Israeli media saying:
- Israeli sources have highlighted the need for immediate improvements within UNRWA, including the advancement of women, establishment of a directorate, full digitization of UNRWA’s school curriculum, and a hotline for reporting problematic content, as mentioned in JPost.
- UNRWA faces challenges in maintaining neutrality, with political views and threats from staff unions, and has been accused of teaching hatred and glorifying terrorism in schools, according to Times of Israel and JNS.
- Despite the challenges, UNRWA is recognized for having a more developed approach to neutrality compared to other UN aid agencies, as noted in Maariv.
Sources: - Al Jazeera
- AP News
- WELT
- Der Spiegel
- The Guardian
- Ynet
- Maariv
- Times Of Israel
- Jerusalem Post
