ABNA24 - Roland Friedrich, director of UNRWA affairs in the occupied West Bank, has warned that the agency’s ongoing funding crisis could force a reduction or suspension of essential services.
UNRWA is facing a $100 million cash-flow deficit in its 2026 core program budget, threatening its ability to provide essential services to millions of Palestinian refugees
Speaking to reporters, Friedrich said the financial crisis has forced the agency to adopt austerity measures and cut expenditures.
These measures, according to him, include reducing working hours and salaries for some staff, as well as scaling back the hours and days of providing services at schools and health centers.
He added that these cuts severely restrict UNRWA’s ability to respond to growing refugee needs, particularly across Palestinian camps and communities in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip.
Friedrich called on the international community and donors to respond urgently to the agency’s $1.26 billion appeal for 2026, aimed at providing aid and essential services to roughly 2.4 million refugees in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.
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