THE Swedish government said on Saturday that it would resume funding the United Nations aid agency supporting Palestinians.
Its decision comes weeks after more than a dozen countries halted hundreds of millions of dollars of support in response to Israeli allegations against the organisation and follows similar moves by the European Union and Canada.
Sweden’s U-turn came as a ship bearing tons of humanitarian aid was preparing to leave Cyprus for Gaza after international donors launched a sea corridor to supply the besieged territory, facing widespread hunger after five months of war.
Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides told reporters late on Saturday that the ship would depart within the next 24 hours.
The UN agency had warned that without funding being restored, the already desperate situation for the two million Palestinians in Gaza would deteriorate even further.
“The humanitarian situation in Gaza is devastating and the needs are acute,” Sweden’s development minister Johan Forssell said, adding that UNRWA had agreed to increased transparency and stricter controls.
Sweden said it will give UNRWA half of the $38 million (£30m) funding it promised for this year, with more to come.
Israel had accused 12 of UNRWA’s thousands of employees of participating in the October 7 Hamas attacks on Israel, during which 1,139 people were killed and around 250 others taken hostage.
Countries, including the United States, quickly suspended funding to UNRWA worth about $450m (£355m), almost half its budget for the year.
While the UN has launched investigations, Israel has failed to provide any evidence for its accusations.
Meanwhile, as the Muslim holy month of Ramadan was set to begin, hungry Gaza residents scrambled for packages of food supplies dropped by US and Jordanian military planes — an utterly inadequate method of delivery, according to humanitarian groups.
People dashed through devastated Gaza City neighbourhoods as the aid descended. “I have orphans, I want to feed them!” one woman cried.
“The issue of aid is brutal and no-one accepts it,” said another resident, Momen Mahra, claiming that most airdropped aid falls into the sea. “We want better methods.”
The US — most prolific supplier of arms to Israeli forces — said that its planes airdropped more than 41,000 “meal equivalents” and 23,000 bottles of water into northern Gaza.
The Health Ministry in Gaza said at least 30,878 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli action since the war began.
