With Palestinians in the Occupied Palestinian Territory –
including East Jerusalem – and those who have fled the conflict
in Syria, facing humanitarian crises, the United Nations Relief
and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East
(UNRWA) today launched an $813 million emergency
aid appeal.
Speaking to UN News, Pierre Krähenbühl, the
Commissioner General for UNRWA said: “Palestine refugees are
among the worst affected by the conflict. Over 95 per cent of
those who have remained in Syria – 430,000 – are in critical
need of sustained humanitarian assistance.”
Mr. Krähenbühl said that the fact that 917,000 people are now
in need of food assistance, a tenfold increase since 2000, is a
“scandal.”
Of the requested $813 million, $402 is targeted for
Palestine refugees in Gaza and the West Bank, including East
Jerusalem. This would allow nearly one million refugees in Gaza
to receive food aid and provide rental assistance to 6,500
families who lost their homes during the 2014 hostilities as
well as repairs for more than 50,00 families whose homes have
been damaged or destroyed. It would also cover food insecure
refugees in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
Among refugees in occupied Palestinian territory, the rate of
unemployment is 43.2 per cent in Gaza and 19.5 per cent in the
West Bank. Hundreds of thousands are food insecure and
children, especially those in Gaza, require psychosocial
support due to trauma.
The remaining $411
million in the request is intended to provide humanitarian
assistance, protection, and basic services to 430,000 Palestine
refugees inside Syria, 30,000 who have fled to Lebanon, and
almost 17,000 who are now in Jordan due to the ongoing
conflict. Some 95 per cent of Palestine refugees from Syria are
in dire need of sustained humanitarian assistance. In Lebanon,
50 per cent live in camps and 85 per cent living in Jordan are
categorized as vulnerable or extremely vulnerable.
At a news conference in Geneva where the appeal was launched
earlier today, Mr. Krähenbühl said: “1.6 million
Palestine refugees, who are more insecure than ever and whose
needs are growing, require our resolute action. I call for
urgent and generous support from the international community.”
UNRWA is the largest direct provider of assistance to Palestine
refugees who have suffered as a result of the Syrian conflict,
providing cash assistance, water and sanitation, food and
essential non-food items, shelter, health, education,
livelihoods, microfinance, and protection.
