GENEVA, February 1. /TASS/. The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) will have to suspend its activities in the Middle East and the Gaza Strip if it does not receive further funding, UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said in a statement, cited by Reuters.

"The agency remains the largest aid organization in one of the most severe and complex humanitarian crises in the world," Lazzarini said.

A number of countries, including the UK, Germany, Canada and the US, have announced the suspension of UNRWA funding due to suspected links to the Palestinian radical Hamas movement. According to a Bloomberg report, Israeli authorities believe that up to 10% of UNRWA employees were members of Hamas or the radical Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement. Lazzarini ordered the dismissal of several agency employees allegedly involved in the October 7 attack on Israel by Hamas militants last year.

The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East was established in 1949. Its tasks include providing medical, social, and food aid as well as education to 5.9 million refugees living in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. UNRWA employs more than 30,000 staff. The agency is managed by the Commissioner General appointed by the UN Secretary General. Since March 2020 the commissioner's post has belonged to Swiss Philippe Lazzarini. The organization is funded by voluntary contributions from UN member states, as well as the EU and international NGOs. It needs about $1.2 billion a year to be fully operational. In 2022, the organization received $1.17 billion. The largest donor to UNRWA is the US ($344 million in 2022). Russia's contribution in 2022 amounted to $2 million.