Israel will not approve UN food convoys to the northern Gaza Strip, the head of the United Nations relief agency for Palestinians has said.
“Despite the tragedy unfolding under our watch, the Israeli authorities informed the UN that they would no longer approve any UNRWA food convoys to the north,” UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said on X.
“This is outrageous and makes it intentional to obstruct lifesaving assistance during a man-made family,” he added.
Israel accused 12 of the UNRWA’s 30,000 employees of involvement in the October 7 Hamas attack, which killed nearly 1,200 people.
Several Western countries, including the US, suspended their funding to the UN refugee agency pending investigations into the Israeli allegations.
The EU, Canada and Sweden, however, announced earlier this month that they will proceed with funding for UNRWA as Israel has yet to put any evidence publicly to support its allegations.
UNRWA was created by the UN General Assembly more than 70 years ago to assist Palestinians who were forcibly displaced from their land.
The agency provides crucial support to millions of Palestinian refugees in the Gaza Strip, West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and other areas where large numbers of registered Palestinians live.