Avast ye! Austria be holdin' off on the doubloons it be payin' to UNRWA 'til they sort out their crew celebratin' with Hamas!
2024-01-29
Arr, Austria be the 12th land to cease payments to the UNRWA, claimin' that some scallywags among its crew aided and reveled in the Oct. 7 raid o' the Israel settlements, led by those rapscallions from Hamas.
Austria has become the twelfth country to suspend payments to the United Nations' Palestinian aid agency (UNRWA) due to allegations that some of its workers were involved in a deadly Hamas-led terror attack on Israel. The Austrian foreign ministry stated that aid will remain suspended pending a full investigation into the alleged involvement of UNRWA workers. Israel has also accused UNRWA employees of keeping an Israeli hostage captive and celebrating the attack in classrooms with students. Austria joins other countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Australia, Finland, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Canada, and Japan in pausing funding to the aid agency. France and Japan were the latest countries to announce their suspension of aid, and both emphasized the need for a thorough investigation. However, Norway has decided to continue sending aid, despite the serious allegations against some UNRWA staff. Germany and Egypt have also affirmed their commitment to providing aid to Palestinians. The German Chancellor and the Egyptian President agreed on the importance of allowing humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip. In October 2023, Hamas-led forces conducted a brutal attack on Israeli communities, resulting in the deaths of 1,200 people and the hostage-taking of over 250 individuals. Despite these allegations and suspensions, UNRWA plays a crucial role in providing essential services to Palestinian refugees, especially in the Gaza Strip where the humanitarian situation is deteriorating further.