The European Union (EU) is calling this Monday for an audit into the functioning of the UN agency (United Nations) for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA).
This decision comes after accusations of the possible involvement of some of its employees in the October 7 attack in Israel.
“We are asking them to agree to an audit being carried out by independent experts, chosen by the European Commission,” says European spokesperson Éric Mamer.
The Commission also specified that it would decide whether or not to suspend its funding to UNRWA, depending on the results of the investigation opened by the UN.
She added that no payments were expected until the end of February.
“The Commission will examine this subject in light of the outcome of the investigation announced by the UN and the actions it will take,” she specifies.
Several countries have suspended their funding
“It is absolutely normal that we demand that these allegations be clarified and investigated when we are one of the main donors” of humanitarian and development aid to the Palestinians, adds Eric Mamer.
Australia and Canada announced this weekend the suspension of their funding to UNRWA, after accusations from Israeli authorities that employees may have been involved in the Hamas attack on October 7.
Other countries have since done the same.
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The United States announced on Friday “temporarily suspending” all future funding for the UN agency at the heart of the distribution of aid to civilians in the Gaza Strip and under the fire of fighting between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement.
The October 7 attack resulted in the deaths of around 1,140 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP (Agence France Presse) count based on official Israeli figures.
In response, Israel vowed to “annihilate” Hamas, which has governed Gaza since 2007, and launched a vast military operation that left 26,422 people dead, the vast majority of them women, children and adolescents, according to the ministry's latest report. of the Health of the Islamist movement.