DROWNING OF PALESTINIANS OFF THE COAST OF SICILY
A ‘CLEAR AND TRAGIC SIGN’ OF UNTENABLE SITUATION
19 March 2015
STATEMENT BY UNRWA SPOKESPERSON, CHRIS GUNNESS
According to latest reports, as many as nine Palestinians drowned off the coast of Sicily on 4 March. They were amongst 59 Palestinians who were part of a larger group trying to reach Europe from the shores of Libya.
The fact that this group reportedly consisted of Palestine refugees from Syria, as well as from Gaza and Lebanon, is a clear and tragic sign that Palestine refugees are finding life in Syria and beyond increasingly untenable.
The conflict has overwhelmed Palestine refugee communities in Syria, with a widespread disrespect for international law and the protection of civilians. In Gaza, the effects of the occupation, blockade and recurring military campaigns have devastated not only Palestine refugee homes, lives and income, but also hope for a secure and dignified future. In Lebanon, where Palestine refugees are already socially and economically marginalized, the strain of Lebanon's refugee load has pushed Palestine refugees into destitution and desperation.
These tragedies involving men, women and children drowning at sea stem not only from armed conflict, occupation and a lack of protection of human rights, but more fundamentally from the failure to resolve the Palestine refugee problem. At a time of rising extremism in the Middle East region, the failure of the international community to resolve the Palestinian issue takes on an added significance.
The international community has, through UNRWA, supported the resilience of Palestine refugees throughout the region since 1950. UNRWA appeals for an urgent increase in this indispensable assistance, calls for full compliance with obligations under international law and the protection of those fleeing conflict, and stresses the ever-more urgent need for political solutions to the Palestinian-Israeli and Syrian conflicts so that Palestine refugees can again build for a dignified and secure future.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
UNRWA is a United Nations agency established by the General Assembly in 1949 and is mandated to provide assistance and protection to a population of some 5 million registered Palestine refugees. Its mission is to help Palestine refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, West Bank and the Gaza Strip to achieve their full potential in human development, pending a just solution to their plight. UNRWA’s services encompass education, health care, relief and social services, camp infrastructure and improvement, and microfinance.
Financial support to UNRWA has not kept pace with an increased demand for services caused by growing numbers of registered refugees, expanding need, and deepening poverty. As a result, the Agency's General Fund (GF), supporting UNRWA’s core activities and 97 per cent reliant on voluntary contributions, has begun each year with a large projected deficit. Currently the deficit stands at US$ 100 million.
For more information, please contact:
Christopher Gunness
UNRWA Spokesperson
Mobile:
+972 (0)54 240 2659
Office:
+972 (0)2 589 0267
Sami Mshasha
Chief of Communications & Arabic Language Spokesperson
Mobile:
+972 (0)54 216 8295
Office:
+972 (0)2 589 0724
Document Sources: United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA)
Country: Lebanon, Syria
Subject: Human rights and international humanitarian law, Refugees and displaced persons
Publication Date: 19/03/2015