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UN PhotoGENEVA / GAZA UNRWA LAZZARINI
STORY: GENEVA / GAZA UNRWA LAZZARINI
TRT: 2:41
SOURCE: UNTV CH
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 30 APRIL 2024 GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
1. Med shot, exterior, UN flag alley
2. Wide shot, speaker at the podium during press conference with journalists
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Philippe Lazzarini, Commissioner-General, UNRWA:
“We believe that that much more needs to be done. It is true that there have been more supply entering during the months of April, but this is still far from enough to reverse the negative trend we have seen.”
4. Wide shot: Speakers at the podium, with photographers and journalists in the room
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Philippe Lazzarini, Commissioner-General, UNRWA: “Hostages are still in captivity with the Hamas and that both, the Secretary-General, myself but other UN officials keep asking for the unconditional and immediate release of the hostages. But I have also shared this morning our deep concern regarding the Gazans detained by Israeli security forces.”
6. Med shot, speakers at the podium with journalists in room
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Philippe Lazzarini, Commissioner-General, UNRWA:
“People have told us that they are routinely rounded up when they were arrested, they were routinely rounded up, stripped to the underwear and loaded into trucks, blindfolded and bombed. Most of the time, once arrested, these detainees, remain incommunicado and they are subjected to shocking, inhuman treatment. Among the inhuman treatment they have described to us waterboarding, severe beatings, attacked by dogs.”
8. Med shot, Journalists in the press room
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Philippe Lazzarini, Commissioner-General, UNRWA:
“Up to sixteen countries suspended the contribution to the Agency (UNRWA). The good news is that, as of today, most of the donor countries have resumed their contribution to the Agency. We just have a hand full of country who still need to take a decision. We know that the main contributor, the US, has indicated that they will not be able to support the Agency before March 2025.”
10. Med shot, journalist listening in press briefing
11. SOUNDBITE (English) Philippe Lazzarini, Commissioner-General, UNRWA:
“If really today there is a genuine commitment to reactivate and bring back the two- state solution on the table, the Agency can retrieve its temporary nature and supporting the transition leading to the two- state solution, the transition leading to the day after.”
12. Med shot, cameraman filming with speaker on screen
13. Wide shot, cameramen filming with journalist listening
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) warns that much more assistance to Palestinians in Gaza is necessary to prevent a worsening famine trend, despite some recent improvements in the flow of aid.
“We believe that that much more needs to be done. It is true that there have been more supply entering during the months of April, but this is still far from enough to reverse the negative trend we have seen,” said UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini.
Highlighting the urgency of the situation, Mr. Lazzarini described the efforts to combat hunger as "a race against the clock," particularly in northern Gaza. He noted that although food is available in local markets, accessibility remains a challenge due to the lack of circulating cash in the region.
Mr. Lazzarini also addressed ongoing concerns about the Israeli hostages held by Hamas and Palestinian detainees in Israeli custody, stressing the need for their unconditional and immediate release.
“Hostages are still in captivity with the Hamas and that […] the Secretary-General, [me and] other UN officials keep asking for the unconditional and immediate release of the hostages,” Mr. Lazzarini said. “But I have also shared our deep concern regarding the Gazans detained by Israeli security forces,” he added.
According to testimonies received by UNRWA,Palestinian detainees often face severe mistreatment. “People have told us that they are routinely rounded up when they were arrested, […] stripped to the underwear and loaded into trucks, blindfolded and bombed,” Mr. Lazzarini reported. “Most of the time, once arrested, these detainees remain incommunicado and they are subjected to shocking, inhuman treatment. Among the inhuman treatment they have described to us waterboarding, severe beatings, attacked by dogs,” he added.
The fear of an Israeli attack into Rafah, the southern part of the Gaza strip, adds to the constant state of trauma among the people there, Mr. Lazzarini reported.
Regarding UNRWA's funding crisis, Mr. Lazzarini revealed that sixteen countries suspended contributions to the agency, but most have since resumed their support. “Up to sixteen countries suspended the contribution to the Agency (UNRWA). The good news is that, as of today, most of the donor countries have resumed their contribution to the Agency. We just have a handful of countries who still need to take a decision. We know that the main contributor, the US, has indicated that they will not be able to support the Agency before March 2025,” Mr. Lazzarini said.
Despite challenges, UNRWA has secured USD 115 million in private funding and received contributions from previously non-contributing countries, ensuring its humanitarian operations can continue until June.
Following allegations against some UNRWA staff in the Hamas attack of 7 October, some donor countries withheld funds from the agency. However, an independent review led by the former French foreign minister Catherine Colonna, to assess whether UNRWA is doing everything within its power to ensure neutrality, found UNRWA’s procedures to be robust.
UNRWA remains the largest humanitarian organization in besieged Gaza, providing the backbone to aid operations in the enclave, where over 34,000 Palestinians have been killed since October 7, according to authorities. The Commissioner-General asserted that if the political will exists to reactivate and pursue a two-state solution, UNRWA could once again regain its vocation as a temporary aid agency. In such a context, the agency could also play a vital role in the transition to the establishment of a Palestinian state, he said.
“If really today there is a genuine commitment to reactivate and bring back the two-state solution on the table, the agency can retrieve its temporary nature and supporting the transition leading to the two- state solution, the transition leading to the day after,” Mr. Lazzarini said.
