US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said this Friday (24) that the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) will have no role in delivering humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.
Rubio made the statement at a press conference after visiting the Civil-Military Coordination Center in southern Israel.
“UNRWA will not play any role [na distribuição da ajuda humanitária]. And the UN is here. The UN, we are looking at the work they are doing, the World Food Programme. There are also non-profit NGOs, humanitarian aid organizations that are involved in this, Samaritan’s Purse [organização humanitária cristã]so it is a conglomerate of around eight to 12 groups that are here”, said the secretary.
“The United Nations is here. They are on the ground. We are willing to work with them if they can make this work, but without UNRWA. UNRWA has become a subsidiary of [grupo terrorista] Hamas,” Rubio accused.
This year, the Donald Trump administration maintained a blockade of resources for UNRWA that had been imposed by the Joe Biden administration, following reports that members of the UN agency were members of Hamas.
In January, an Israeli law came into force that prohibits UNRWA from operating in Israeli territory, which also restricts the agency’s work in Gaza and the West Bank, as it operated in coordination with Israeli authorities.
This Friday, Rubio said that Israel, the United States and allies are still in the phase of trying to complete the first phase of Trump’s peace plan, which includes exchanging all Israeli hostages still in Gaza for Palestinian prisoners.
All 20 living hostages have been released, but the remains of 13 of the 28 dead hostages have not yet been handed over.
Rubio also reiterated that Hamas will have no role in the future governance of Gaza, despite the terrorist group continuing to administer the enclave during the ceasefire with Israel.
“Suffice it to say that everyone who signed this plan, all of these other countries agreed and they all agreed that Hamas cannot govern and cannot be involved in the future governance of Gaza,” the Secretary of State said.
“But we’re not at that point yet. Remember, even with all of this being worked on, we’re still in the phase of trying to maintain the ceasefire. We’re trying to get to the phase of getting humanitarian aid flowing. We’re trying to get to the phase of ensuring that all the commitments we’ve made, including [sobre] the hostages, be fulfilled,” added Rubio.
