Sweden, Canada to Restart Payments to UNRWA

Canada and Sweden have announced that they will resume funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), the main UN agency that provides support to Palestinian refugees in the Gaza Strip. They cited the worsening humanitarian crisis in the region as the reason for their decision. The countries had previously suspended payments to the aid organization, along with several other nations, after Israel accused a dozen of its 13,000 employees in Gaza of being involved in the Hamas-led attacks on Israel or their aftermath on October 7. UNRWA has since taken steps to improve accountability and address the accusations.

In a statement, Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that it was "a serious mistake” for the two countries to restart financing the U.N. agency. "It constitutes tacit consent and encouragement on the part of the governments of Canada and Sweden to continue to ignore the involvement of UNRWA employees in terrorist activity,” the statement read.