UNRWA chief vows not to ‘abandon ship’ at a critical moment 

Philippe Lazzarini in Geneva on Tuesday KEYSTONE

Despite calls for resignation, the head of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) said that he won't "abandon ship".  

Philippe Lazzarini, head of the agency, addressed the accusations against UNRWA on Italian-speaking Swiss television RSI.  

Now, he must face two crises: the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and that of UNRWA itself. Initially, there were payment freezes due to allegations of terrorism. Then, on Tuesday, during Lazzarini’s visit to Geneva, renewed calls for the dissolution of UNRWA emerged. Lazzarini warned member states that calls for UNRWA to be dismantled were short-sighted. 

He stated that the agency would be necessary not only for emergency aid but also after the end of the war. This includes providing a perspective, through education and other services, for a generation traumatised by war. He spoke of foresight at a time when everything is moving fast. 

Internal and external investigations underway 

Two weeks after important donor countries, including Switzerland, suspended payments, RSI journalists had the opportunity to ask him about Israel’s accusations. 

The journalist asked whether control over the organisation in Gaza has been lost. “We have 13,000 employees in Gaza. I don’t believe the relief organisation has the means to monitor every single one of these employees outside of their working hours,” Lazzarini replied.  

The organisation has dismissed suspected terrorists, and an internal investigation is currently underway. Starting tomorrow, an external investigation will also be launched to determine whether UNRWA can prevent partisanship, as explained by Lazzarini in the RSI interview.  

This inquiry includes the question of how a suspected Hamas tunnel can run 18 metres under the UNRWA headquarters in Gaza City. “As I understand it, the entrance to the tunnel is supposed to be far away from the UNRWA headquarters, approximately 800 metres away. While this is worrying information, it’s essential to note that hundreds of kilometres of tunnels have been discovered under the Gaza Strip,” said Lazzarini.  

Listen to the criticism, investigate the accusations, but carry on – that was part of Lazzarini’s message in Geneva, despite calls for his resignation, including from Switzerland. “I was appointed by the UN secretary general, and I report to the General Assembly. Neither of these bodies has called for my resignation. On the contrary, we are at a critical, existential moment. You don’t abandon ship,” he said.  

Investigations take time, and UNRWA needs the money now. Lazzarini argues that the donor countries imposing the block must ultimately assess the risk of whether they can truly take responsibility for the collapse of UNRWA. 

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