Canada to resume sending funds to UN agency in Gaza

Canada has announced it will resume aid payments to UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, following a probe that found some members were involved in the 7 October attack against Israel.

Canada was one of 16 countries to halt future funds after Israel presented evidence of violence by UNRWA staff.

The Canadian statement said the funding would resume while investigations into the staff members continue.

Canada is the 11st largest contributor to the UNRWA budget, 2022 data shows.

The decision to resume funding was announced in a statement on Friday by Canada's Minister of International Development Ahmed Hussen.

He said the decision was made "in recognition of the robust investigative process underway" into the allegations.

He added that the temporary pause in donations was being lifted "so more can be done to respond to the urgent needs of Palestinian civilians".

In addition, the Canadian Armed Forces will donate around 300 cargo parachutes to Jordan, so they can be used to airdrop supplies into Gaza.

In a press release, the Canadian government notes that "no regularly scheduled payment that was intended to go to UNRWA was missed during the temporary pause".

"By providing certainty that Canada's planned contribution will proceed, this will help prevent the imminent collapse of this essential organization."

The UN is conducting an internal probe into the allegations, while former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna is also leading an independent review.

On Friday the EU, UK, US and others said they planned to open a sea route to Gaza to deliver aid that could begin operating this weekend.

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency, or UNRWA, is the biggest UN agency operating in Gaza. It provides healthcare, education and other humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. It employs around 13,000 people inside Gaza.

Israel military launched an air and ground campaign in Gaza after Hamas attacked it on 7 October and killed 1,200 people and took more than 200 hostage.

More than 30,800 people have been killed in Gaza since then, the territory's Hamas-run health ministry says.

On top of that, the UN has warned that famine in Gaza is "almost inevitable" without action to provide aid, and the World Health Organisation says that children are dying of starvation in the north of the Gaza Strip.