Today, the Commission has decided to allocate an additional EUR 68 million to support the Palestinian population across the region to be implemented through international partners like the Red Cross and the Red Crescent. This comes in addition to the foreseen EUR 82 million of aid to be implemented through UNRWA in 2024, bringing the total to EUR 150 million. The Commission will proceed to paying EUR 50 million of the UNRWA envelope next week. Furthermore, the Commission has allocated EUR 125 million of humanitarian aid for Palestinians for 2024. The Commission is contracting the first EUR 16 million today.

As set out on 29 January, the Commission has assessed its funding decision for UNRWA in light of the very serious allegations made on 24 January that implicate several UNRWA staff in the heinous 7 October attacks. It took account of the action taken by the UN and the commitments the Commission required from UNRWA.

The Commission welcomes the UN's Office for Internal Oversight Services investigation to shed light into the serious allegations against UNRWA staff. Furthermore, it commends the UN for creating an independent Review Group led by Catherine Colonna to assess whether the Agency is doing everything within its power to ensure neutrality and respond to allegations of serious breaches.

Following exchanges with the Commission, UNRWA has also indicated that it stands ready to ensure that a review of its staff is carried out to confirm they did not participate in the attacks and that further controls are put in place to mitigate such risks in the future.