IAN BLACK

Early December will mark the 70th anniversary of the founding of UNRWA, the United Nations agency set up to deal with the hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees who were displaced in the Nakba and the creation of Israel two years earlier. The way things are going, there may not be much to celebrate.

UNRWA runs camps in the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. It serves the needs of 5.4 million Palestinians - the world’s largest and longest-standing refugee population - providing education, health-care, municipal services and emergency responses. It is the oldest international refugee organisation in the world.

Over the past year it has faced daunting and unprecedented challenges: in September 2018 the administration of President Donald Trump announced that it was cutting all funding to what it described as an "irredeemably flawed operation". The US state department elaborated that an "endlessly and exponentially expanding community of entitled beneficiaries is simply unsustainable and has been in crisis mode for many years."

In the preceding months the US had slashed funding from $365m to $65m, resulting in redundancies and a move to part-time contracts for many of the agency's Palestinian employees. The move was seen as part of a wider onslaught on Palestinians following Trump’s controversial recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and the closure of the PLO mission in Washington.

It seemed ominously in tune with the position of the Israeli prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, who accused UNRWA of helping "fictitious refugees" and by doing so perpetuating the Palestinian refugee problem and “the narrative of the right-of-return, as it were, in order to eliminate the State of Israel.”

Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser, echoed the Israeli view by describing the agency as "corrupt, inefficient, and doesn't help peace." Other American critics have called on UNRWA donors to demand that the UN treat Palestinian refugees like all other refugees in the world and address their needs through the United Nations High Commission for Refugees. (UNHCR).

Israel’s official line has long been that Palestinian residents of Arab states — all of whom are considered refugees by UNRWA — should become citizens of those states, as they are in Jordan, or of the Palestinian Authority. UNRWA has been accused by Israelis of employing Hamas members and using anti-Semitic textbooks.

The UN agency, however, does not have to deal only with direct American and Israeli hostility. In recent weeks its inner workings have been subject to embarrassing public exposure. An internal UNRWA ethics report leaked to the media in late July contained shocking allegations of “sexual misconduct, nepotism, retaliation, discrimination and other abuses of authority, for personal gain (by staff), to suppress legitimate dissent, and to otherwise achieve their personal objectives." Those named included UNRWA's Commissioner-General Pierre Krahenbuhl. The UN Office of Internal Oversight Services is investigating.

Palestinian commentators have said that corruption must be expunged, but some strongly suspect that the report was deliberately leaked in order to target UNRWA. That is, on the face of it, a reasonable assumption. Israel’s ambassador to the UN immediately called on member states to stop making financial contributions.

Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Belgium have already suspended support and there are fears that Britain may follow suit. The UK was quick to help fill the gap caused by the withdrawal of US funds, but the internal scandal may be a problem of a different nature. All this has added to the pressure on the PLO, already in crisis because of US hostility, the unpopularity of Mahmoud Abbas and the long and damaging rift with Hamas in Gaza. Saeb Erakat, the PLO secretary-general, has publicly urged those countries not to stop financing UNRWA but instead ensure that Israel is held to account for its breaches of international law.

Jordan is especially worried about any further undermining of UNRWA’s work. It provides essential services to more than 370,000 Palestinian refugees in 10 camps, making it the largest host country. It remains vital to support refugees in Syria, including in the Yarmouk camp, south of Damascus. UNRWA activities in Lebanon, where Palestinians face discrimination, have been described as “a matter of life or death.” Its work in the Gaza Strip, blockaded by Israel, is essential.

This is clearly not an easy situation. UNRWA responded to the corruption allegations by pointing out that nothing had yet been proved. Its spokesman was certainly correct to point out, however, that it "is probably among the most scrutinised UN agencies in view of the nature of the conflict and complex and politicised environment it is working in.” Ten years ago, when the agency marked its 60th anniversary, a senior official commented: “We are eager for the day when the Palestinian refugee issue is finally settled. Then -– and only then -– can UNRWA’s staff complete their mission.” It is hardly surprising that it has not yet decided how to mark its 70th birthday.