On 16 January 2024 Australian government Ministers Penny Wong and Pat Conroy announced that they were increasing the funding to UNWRA by about $21 million. Following false allegations by Israel that Hamas controls UNWRA, DFAT suspended that funding. More than half the extra $21 million was earmarked for Palestinian refugees in Lebanon and Jordan. Hamas has no real presence in the camps in either of those two countries. The Australian government decision is absurd because Israel’s allegations are false and the money that it was sending had nothing to do with Hamas because it was going to agencies like Red Crescent and NGOs working in refugee camps where Hamas has no presence. Twenty-eight (28) NGOs providing aid in Gaza made the following call on 31 January 2024
No limits for these monstrous killers.
UNRWA head accuses Israel of buying Google ads to block donations to agency.
Commissioner-general says Israeli government has undertaken a defamation campaign against the UN agency.
As aid organizations, we are deeply concerned and outraged that some of the largest donors (US UK etc) have united to suspend funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), the main aid provider for millions of Palestinians in Gaza and the region. This comes amid a rapidly worsening humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza.
Australian unions’ foreign aid organisation added this:
Union Aid Abroad-APHEDA is deeply concerned about the suspension of Australia’s funding to the UN’s main agency providing aid in Gaza, the UNRWA. We urge the Australian government to reconsider this decision and restore funding, as the UN agency is critical to the delivery of vital services.
We publish the following letter from a former UN volunteer Gareth Smith. – Ian Curr, ed., 1 Feb 2024.
Australia’s decision to stop funding the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNWRA) is reminiscent of its cancellation of funding to World Vision in 2016 (Decision to halt aid to UN Agency in Gaza will ‘cost lives’, Herald January 30).
Mohammed El-Halabi, World Vision’s Palestinian senior aid worker in Gaza, was falsely accused by Israel of diverting $50 million over 7 years to Hamas. World Vision spent $7 million on a forensic audit which, like the Australian government’s Department of Foreign affairs and Trade (DFAT), found no evidence to back up Israel’s claims. World Vision pointed out that $50 million was double its entire Gaza budget!
Despite Mohammed being completely exonerated, he has been jailed in Israel for 12 years and tortured. UN Special Rapporteurs and lawyers have denounced the gross miscarriage of justice in his trial. Once again, Australia panders to Israel’s demands!–
Gareth W R Smith
Palestine Liberation Centre
14 Cumbebin Park
Byron Bay
NSW 2481
Australia
Tel: (61)2-56058404
MOB: 0491107279
“Those who can make you believe in absurdities can make you commit atrocities.” Voltaire
George Orwell, ‘Political language is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind.’
“The sleep of reason produces monsters.” Goya
The spread of misinformation & disinformation continues to be used as a weapon in the war in #Gaza.
As part of its campaign to undermine & discredit @UNRWA, the Government of Israel has been buying ads on @Google to block users from giving donations to the Agency + undertake a defamation campaign.
@UNRWA is the largest humanitarian organization responding to the crisis in #Gaza. This does not just hurt the agency’s reputation but most importantly it puts the lives of our staff at risk.
These deliberate efforts to spread misinformation should stop + be investigated.
Companies including social media platforms continue to make profit through spreading misinformation. More regulations are needed to combat disinformation + hate speech.
Philippe Lazzarini
@UNLazzarini
31 Aug 2024