Sweden will no longer fund UNRWA aid agency, minister says

Sweden will no longer fund the U.N. refugee agency for Palestinians (UNRWA) but instead provide humanitarian assistance to Gaza via other channels, the Nordic country's aid minister, Benjamin Dousa, told Swedish broadcaster TV4 on Friday.

Israel, which will ban UNRWA's operations in the country from late January, has repeatedly accused the agency of being involved in the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas-led attacks on Israel that triggered the ongoing war in Gaza.

Sweden's decision to end funding for UNRWA was in response to the Israeli ban, as it will make channelling aid to the Palestinians via the agency more difficult, Dousa said.

Sweden plans to increase its overall humanitarian assistance to Gaza next year, he added.

"There are several other organisations in Gaza, I have just been there and met several of them," the minister said, naming the U.N. World Food Programme as one potential recipient.

The United Nations General Assembly threw its support behind UNRWA this month, demanding that Israel respect the agency's mandate and "enable its operations to proceed without impediment or restriction".

($1 = 11.0323 Swedish crowns)