UK funding for aid agency UNRWA in Gaza will restart, Foreign Secretary announces

The UK government has restarted funding for the UN aid agency UNRWA in Gaza, after it had been paused due to allegations staff were involved in the October 7 attacks.

UNRWA is the UN agency which provides healthcare, education and humanitarian aid to Palestinians, and employs 13,000 people in Gaza.

Foreign Secretary David Lammy announced the funding will resume because UK aid to Gaza is a "moral necessity in the face of such a catastrophe".

The UK’s funding for UNRWA was suspended in January after allegations by Israel that 12 staff were involved in the 7 October attack. But an independent review found a lack of evidence for these claims.

The Foreign Office said that following the review "the government is confident that UNRWA is taking action to ensure it meets the highest standards of neutrality."

Lammy told the House of Commons in his first official statement as foreign secretary: "No other agency can deliver aid at the scale needed. [UNRWA] is already feeding over half of Gaza’s population. It will be vital for future reconstruction and it provides critical services to Palestinian refugees in the region."

The aid funding is resuming immediately, with the government announcing £21 million of new funds.

The Foreign Office said the funding "will go towards UNRWA’s flash appeal for Gaza and the West Bank, which focuses its resources on emergency food, shelter and other support for 3 million people, as well as its wider work supporting 6 million Palestinian refugees across the region."

The foreign secretary told the Commons he was "appalled" by the allegations about UNRWA staff, but that the UN Secretary General "took these allegations seriously".

Lammy spoke with Secretary General Antonio Guterres on Thursday night to confirm the UK's decision to resume funding.

“UNRWA has acted, partners like Japan, the European Union and Norway have also now acted, this Government will act too. I can confirm to the House that we are overturning the suspension of UNRWA funding," he said.

Speaking in the Commons, Lammy also confirmed the UK will not implement a blanket ban on arms sales to Israel but will consider issues linked to offensive weapons used in Gaza.

When asked by new Green MP Ellie Chowns if he would consider suspending arms sales, Lammy replied: "It would not be right to have a blanket ban between our country and Israel."

The foreign secretary said it was because "Israel is surrounded by people who would see its annihilation".

He continued: "It is being attacked by the Houthis, missiles are being fired from Hezbollah, notwithstanding the desire for Hamas to wipe Israel off the map."

Lammy’s remarks came after Labour MPs tabled a King’s Speech amendment calling for the immediate suspension of export licences for arms transfers to Israel.

The foreign secretary also faced calls to outline when the Government will publish its assessment on whether any breaches of international humanitarian law (IHL) have occurred since the October 7 Hamas attack.

A number of MPs have welcomed the news that UNRWA funding will be resumed.

Labour MP Sarah Champion wrote on X: "Thank goodness! UNRWA has been used as a political football - on all sides - for far too long."

While another MP Sarah Owen posted "UNRWA are the only agency with the ground capability to deliver the crucial humanitarian support needed in Gaza."

Opening his statement to the House, Lammy declared "I have to be frank - Britain wants an immediate ceasefire."

He criticised Israel for failing to allow enough aid into Gaza, "Israel promised a flood of aid back in April, but imposes impossible and unacceptable restrictions."

More than 38,000 people have been killed in Gaza and more than 80% of the 2.3 million population have been driven from their homes, with most now crowded into squalid tent camps, facing widespread hunger.

Israel launched its campaign in Gaza after Hamas’ October 7 attack in which militants stormed into southern Israel, and killed some 1,200 people - mostly civilians - and abducted around 250.

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