Nations pausing UN Gaza funding could be violating Genocide Convention, expert warns
Geneva, Switzerland - A UN expert warned Sunday that countries defunding the UN agency for Palestinian refugees were breaching a court order to provide effective aid in Gaza and could be violating the 1948 Genocide Convention.
A number of donor countries – including Australia, Canada, Finland, Germany, Italy, and the UK – have followed the lead of the United States in suspending additional funding to UNRWA.
The move came after Israel alleged that several of the UN agency's staff members were involved in Hamas' October 7 attack.
Francesca Albanese, the UN special rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories, warned that the decision to pause funding to UNRWA "overtly defies" the order by the International Court of Justice to allow effective humanitarian assistance to reach Gazans.
"This will entail legal responsibilities – or the demise of the (international) legal system," she wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
UNRWA reacted to the Israeli allegations by firing several staff and promising a thorough investigation into the unspecified claims, but Israel has nonetheless vowed to stop the agency's work in Gaza after its ongoing assault eventually ends.
The row between Israel and UNRWA follows the UN's International Court of Justice ruling on Friday that Israel must prevent possible acts of genocide and allow more aid into Gaza.
That same day, Palestinians and Palestinian Americans shared powerful testimony in a federal court accusing President Joe Biden and other top US officials of complicity in Israel's genocide.
Nations urged not to cut off funding for UNRWA
Albanese, who is an independent expert appointed by the UN Human Rights Council, highlighted the timing of the defunding decisions.
"The day after ICJ concluded that Israel is plausibly committing genocide in Gaza, some states decided to defund UNRWA," she said in a separate post on X.
By doing so, she said, countries are "collectively punishing millions of Palestinians at the most critical time, and most likely violating their obligations under the Genocide Convention."
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has also called on nations to continue funding for UNRWA in spite of the Israeli allegations.
"While I understand their concerns – I was myself horrified by these accusations – I strongly appeal to the governments that have suspended their contributions to, at least, guarantee the continuity of UNRWA's operations," he said in a statement late on Saturday.
Israel's continued bombardment and ground invasion of Gaza has killed at least 26,422 people, most of them women and children, according to the territory's health ministry.
Cover photo: IMAGO / AAP