MOSCOW, February 7. /TASS/. The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) is working under adverse conditions, and only a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip will allow it and other organizations to provide the assistance the embattled enclave desperately needs, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin told TASS.

"The UNRWA, whose activities we support, is working under extremely difficult conditions, under the conditions of the ongoing military operation and armed conflict. The need for an immediate ceasefire remains urgent," he said, responding to a question about the risks for the region from the cessation of UNRWA’s activities following the refusal of some donor countries to continue financially supporting the relief agency.

"Only this will enable the UNRWA and international charitable and humanitarian organizations within the UN system and outside of the UN system to provide real assistance to people in these territories," Vershinin said.

Tensions in the Middle East flared up again on October 7, 2023, after militants from the radical Palestinian group Hamas launched a surprise incursion into Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip, killing residents of border communities and taking people hostage. In response, Israel announced a total blockade of Gaza and launched a ground operation in the enclave, also carrying out strikes on targets in the Strip and certain areas of Lebanon and Syria. On December 1, the Israeli army accused Hamas of violating a ceasefire that had taken effect on November 24 and resumed combat operations in the Gaza Strip. Palestinians held the US responsible for the renewed Israeli aggression.