The Crisis of UNRWA Amidst Ongoing Conflict in Gaza

The Crisis of UNRWA Amidst Ongoing Conflict

In mid-January, Philippe Lazzarini, the head of the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, faced a dire challenge that threatened the very existence of his organization. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency, known as UNRWA, was already grappling with significant crises. Three months had gone by since Hamas militants breached the barrier separating Gaza from Israel, resulting in the tragic loss of approximately 1,200 lives and the abduction of 250 individuals as hostages. In a swift and fierce retaliation, Israel unleashed a barrage of bombs across Gaza, claiming tens of thousands of lives while vowing to dismantle Hamas.

UNRWA was uniquely positioned to address the ensuing humanitarian disaster. Over two-thirds of Gaza’s 2.2 million inhabitants are refugees, and the agency’s role in providing essential services has become increasingly vital. Following Hamas’s takeover of the Gaza Strip in 2007, which ousted the Palestinian Authority that now operates solely in the West Bank, many Gazans found themselves relying heavily on UNRWA for support. Prior to the outbreak of war, UNRWA operated more than 300 schools, health clinics, warehouses, fuel depots, and various other facilities within Gaza, employing around 13,000 individuals. Unlike other U.N. agencies, UNRWA’s workforce is predominantly comprised of local Palestinians, ensuring a deep-rooted connection to the community.

As Israel’s relentless bombardment continued, there was no other organization as entrenched in the territory, equipped with the necessary infrastructure to distribute food, provide shelter, and meet the urgent needs of countless displaced and traumatized individuals. Lazzarini, a seasoned Swiss-Italian diplomat with extensive experience in United Nations aid operations across Africa, the Middle East, and beyond, took charge of UNRWA in 2020. His objective was to stabilize the agency’s operations. However, the outbreak of war abruptly halted those aspirations. Repeated evacuation orders and the devastation wrought by Israel’s airstrikes have displaced around 90% of Gaza’s population, with many individuals being uprooted multiple times. At various points, UNRWA has reported that over a million people — nearly half of Gaza’s populace — have sought refuge in its facilities, with large families crammed into classrooms or warehouses that once stored essential supplies like flour and medicine.

Throughout the conflict, Lazzarini engaged in regular discussions with Israeli officials to facilitate the movement of humanitarian aid and agency personnel within Gaza. The relationship between UNRWA and Israel has historically been fraught with tension, primarily due to the agency’s connection to one of the most contentious aspects of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: the plight of Palestinian refugees. Established in 1949, UNRWA was tasked with caring for Palestinians who fled or were forcibly removed from their homes during the establishment of the Jewish state. As the original Palestinian refugees passed their status to subsequent generations, their numbers swelled to nearly six million, predominantly residing throughout the Middle East.

UNRWA represents a unique historical anomaly: it is the only U.N. agency dedicated to a specific group of refugees, yet it lacks the authority to address the root causes of their displacement and statelessness. Its funding, largely derived from Western countries, is viewed as a stabilizing force in a region rife with volatility, aimed at maintaining order until a resolution regarding the Palestinian refugee issue can be achieved through diplomatic negotiations. Conversely, many Israelis, particularly under the leadership of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, hold a different perspective. They argue that UNRWA’s very existence perpetuates the ongoing conflict by sustaining the belief that one day, these refugees will be able to return to their ancestral lands, which now constitute the state of Israel, thereby threatening its existence.

On January 18, Lazzarini arrived at the David Kempinski Hotel in Tel Aviv to meet with Amir Weissbrod, a deputy director at the Israeli Foreign Ministry. Weissbrod had indicated he had critical information to share, leading Lazzarini to anticipate unfavorable news. When they met, Weissbrod presented a handwritten list in Hebrew, detailing 12 UNRWA employees whom Israel alleged had participated in the October 7 attack. The accusations were grave and cursory but explosive: these individuals were said to have assisted with logistical support, crossed into Israel during the assault, engaged in attacks against Israelis, and played a role in the hostage-taking.