PA holds UNRWA commissioner responsible for cessation of services in refugee camps
A man walks in front of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA)
A man walks in front of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA)
[Ali Jadallah/Anadolu Agency]
April 12, 2023
The Palestinian Authority (PA) yesterday said it held UNRWA's commissioner-general responsible for the repercussions of halting services in Palestinian refugee camps as a result of a strike by the agency's workers.
In a statement, the PA's Ministry of Labour said the commissioner-general must back down from his intransigence and show understanding for the social and humanitarian situation in the Palestinian camps.
It also called on him to immediately start a dialogue with the workers to find solutions to the conflict, urging him to announce the acceptance of the proposed initiative to end the strike.
The PA made reference to the deterioration in the humanitarian situation inside the Palestinian camps, in all areas of health, education, environment and services and its negative impact on all aspects of life, which left students, patients, children, women and the elderly in dismal situations and without services.
READ: Gaza UNRWA staff strike, pledge additional measures
April 12, 2023
The Palestinian Authority (PA) yesterday said it held UNRWA's commissioner-general responsible for the repercussions of halting services in Palestinian refugee camps as a result of a strike by the agency's workers.
In a statement, the PA's Ministry of Labour said the commissioner-general must back down from his intransigence and show understanding for the social and humanitarian situation in the Palestinian camps.
It also called on him to immediately start a dialogue with the workers to find solutions to the conflict, urging him to announce the acceptance of the proposed initiative to end the strike.
The PA made reference to the deterioration in the humanitarian situation inside the Palestinian camps, in all areas of health, education, environment and services and its negative impact on all aspects of life, which left students, patients, children, women and the elderly in dismal situations and without services.
READ: Gaza UNRWA staff strike, pledge additional measures
UN refugee agency employees say no progress made on their demands
10/04/2023 Monday
Staffers of the UN refugee agency UNRWA staged a general strike in the Gaza Strip on Sunday to protest the agency’s lack of response to demands for recruitment of new employees.
“All UNRWA facilities went on a general strike,” Azmi Radwan, head of the labor sector in the UNRWA’s Arab Employees Union, said in a statement.
He said the response to the strike was “large” among employees.
For his part, UNRWA spokesman Adnan Abu Hasna refused to specify the UN agency’s position on the strike.
A meeting was held on Thursday between UNRWA and its local employees in Gaza to discuss their demands.
"There has been no positive progress regarding our demands, except for some minor responses,” the Arab Employees Union said in a statement.
The statement said only 200 teachers were appointed out of 1,500 needed for UNRWA-run schools.
On Friday, the committees representing Palestinian refugees in Gaza called on the UNRWA to halt its downsizing plans.
"We call on the UNRWA administration to abide by previous agreements, improve the conditions of employees, and open the doors for recruitment of hundreds of graduates," the committees said in a statement.
For years, the UNRWA has been suffering from major financial crises, reflecting a decline in its ability to provide services to Palestinian refugees.
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