‘Positively’ considering UNRWA requests for assistance in kind, says India
India is “positively” considering specific requests from the troubled UN agency for Palestine Refugees for assistance in kind, even as Delhi expressed “serious concern” over recent allegations that some of its employees may have been involved in the October 7 Hamas terrorist attack on Israel.
Addressing a special meeting of the UN General Assembly on Monday on the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), India’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Ruchira Kamboj said the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas has led to large scale loss of civilian lives, especially women and children, and has resulted in an alarming humanitarian crisis.
She said India has provided humanitarian aid to the people of Palestine and will continue to do so. “We are also positively considering specific requests from the UNRWA for assistance in kind. We urge utmost diligence in the utilisation of these assistance,” Kamboj said.
As a mark of its solidarity with the Palestinian refugees, Kamboj said India enhanced its annual contribution to the agency from USD 1.25 million to USD 5 million in 2018. Since then, India has been regularly making this contribution to the UN agency annually, which goes to support its core programmes and services, including education, healthcare, relief and social services provided to Palestinian refugees.
She, however, noted that the recent allegations against UNRWA are a “matter of serious concern”. “We have noted that the Secretary-General has announced a time-bound investigation into all such allegations,” Kamboj said.
India also noted the constitution of an independent review group led by the former Foreign Minister of France Catherine Colonna to go into
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