Finland ends UNRWA funding

Finland will be ending its funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).

Finnish funding for the agency, which amounted to about $5.8 million per year, will be cut as soon as the current agreement which spans 2023–2026 expires.

Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Ville Tavio made the announcement on Thursday, adding that the move does not mean ending funding for the Palestinian Territories, rather it is ending funding through UNRWA specifically, saying:

“The level of funding will not decrease, but it will be provided through other channels, such as the World Food Programme”. – Finnish Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Ville Tavio.

The move drew criticism from Finnish Green League MP Inka Hopsu who pointed out that no one can replace or do what UNRWA does in Gaza and the West Bank.

“UNRWA has operated in Palestine for more than 75 years, and no other organization, even within the UN, has the same experience, personnel on the ground, networks, range of operations or logistics in Palestine,” Hopsu said in a Green League statement.

The move shifts Finland toward Israel as it comes in light of the two countries signing a bi-lateral defense agreement active through 2034.

Two days earlier, Israel raided and seized UNRWA’s Qalandiya Training Centre in Kafr Aqab in occupied East Jerusalem, expelling staff from the site, all under the eyes of Itamar Ben-Gvir who took part in the operation.

Israel has consistently accused the United Nations agency of links to Hamas and has prohibited them from operating on Israeli territory – that territory – East Jerusalem – is recognized as being under illegal Israeli occupation by most countries in the world.