Displaced Palestinians build temporary shelters at a camp operated by UNWRA, in Khan Younis, Gaza. (Ahmed Salem/Bloomberg)
(Bloomberg) -- The UK will resume funding to the United Nations Palestinian aid agency, UNRWA, as part of Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s first intervention on the conflict in Gaza since winning a landslide UK election this month.
“Humanitarian aid is a moral necessity in the face of such a catastrophe and it is aid agencies who ensure UK support reaches civilians on the ground,” Foreign Secretary David Lammy told the House of Commons on Friday. “No other agency can deliver aid at the scale needed. It will be vital for future reconstruction and it provides critical services to Palestinian refugees in the region.”
The UK’s previous Conservative administration had suspended funding to UNRWA - along with some other nations - over allegations that some of the agency’s employees were involved in the Oct. 7 attack on Israel. Lammy said he remains “appalled” by the allegations but that UNRWA had strengthened its vetting. The UK will provide £21 million ($27 million) in new funds, he said.
The move comes after Labour’s election victory was tempered by some shock losses, including two members of Starmer’s top team, as the party hemorrhaged votes to candidates who campaigned over Gaza. The premier’s stance angered some voters demanding a more full-throated call for a ceasefire.
The early step to restore UNRWA funding shows Labour is keen to win back those votes in areas the party would typically expect to win comfortably. In his statement, Lammy said he had used a visit to Israel to urge leaders to end the fighting and allow more aid into Gaza.
“Britain wants an immediate ceasefire. The fighting must stop, the hostages must be released, much much more aid must enter Gaza,” Lammy told members of Parliament. “Israel promised a flood of aid back in April but imposes impossible and unacceptable restrictions.”
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