Tánaiste to urge US and UK to restore funding to UN agency for Palestinian refugees

Micheál Martin said he understands the concerns raised as a result of allegations that several of the UNRWA's staff members were involved in the October 7 attacks on Israel, but said in his view UNWRA is an organisation of 40,000 of which 13,000 are working in Gaza. Photo: Sasko Lazarov/© RollingNews.ie

Tánaiste Micheál Martin has said he will urge the US, UK and other countries to restore their funding to the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees.

Mr Martin also said he has received a preliminary briefing from his legal team in the Department of Foreign Affairs about the possibility of Ireland joining South Africa’s case which accuses Israel of genocide at the International Court of Justice (ICJ). 

He described the legal briefing as “complex” and “not all that simple". It comes as the European Commission said it will "review" its support to UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, following allegations several of its staff members were involved in the October 7 attacks on Israel.

Following the accusations, the British government said it was “temporarily pausing any future funding of UNRWA whilst we review these concerning allegations". Australia, Italy, Finland and Canada have all decided to suspend financing of UNRWA as well as the US.

Mr Martin said he will be “advocating” with whomever he meets for the restoration of support as the withdrawal of funding will be "catastrophic".

When asked if ministers will raise the matter while travelling abroad on St Patrick’ Day, which will include the Taoiseach travelling to meet US President Joe Biden, Mr Martin said he hopes funding will have resumed by then.

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Mr Martin said: “So our impulse was fundamentally a humanitarian impulse realizing the enormity of the UNWRA contribution to basic necessities of life in Gaza. To pull away that edifice now I think would be devastating for Gazans.

“I can't understand how we could contemplate it from a humanitarian point of view."

He said he understands the concerns raised as a result of the allegations but said in his view, UNWRA is an organisation of 40,000 of which 13,000 are working in Gaza.

He said: 

There has to be a sense of perspective in terms of what's been alleged and the numbers involved and accepting what happened on October 7 was a heinous, appalling act of inhumanity.

He said people in Gaza are starving as a result of the war with families under huge pressure and children being killed. He said the violence has to stop, there needs to be a humanitarian ceasefire and having met with Arab States last week at the Foreign Affairs Council, he said they repeatedly asked for more trucks and aid to get into Gaza.

In terms of the European Commission stating on Monday it will review its funding, the Tánaiste said he has no issue with people reviewing it once aid “keeps flowing". 

On the possibility of Ireland joining South Africa’s case which accuses Israel of genocide at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), Mr Martin said he will speak to Opposition parties in the Dáil as they need to be apprised of what is involved in joining the case. It comes as Sinn Féin is to bring a motion on Ireland joining the case, a week after the Social Democrats did the same.

Mr Martin said his officials have also been in contact with the South African government as well as officials in The Hague. He said: “They haven't filed any substantive case yet and the indications are it will take some months for them to do that. The fundamental point with intervention is the basis upon which one intervenes in the case of this magnitude and gravity, so there's a lot of work to be done yet,” he added.