UNITED Nations secretary-general Antonio Guterres led calls today for countries to end their suspension of funding for the UN agency providing vital aid in Gaza.

The United States immediately froze funding when news emerged that a dozen employees of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) were under investigation for taking part in the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel that ignited the current war.

Britain, Germany, Canada, Australia, the Netherlands, Italy and other countries quickly followed Washington’s example.

Together, the nine countries that have so far pulled funding accounted for nearly 60 per cent of the UNRWA budget in 2022.

Mr Guterres warned that the UN agency would be forced to scale back aid to more than two million Palestinians in Gaza as soon as next month. 

The coastal enclave is in the grip of a severe humanitarian crisis, with a quarter of the population facing starvation, as aid deliveries are being hindered by fighting and Israeli restrictions.

Mr Guterres said: “The abhorrent alleged acts of these staff members must have consequences. 

“But the tens of thousands of men and women who work for UNRWA, many in some of the most dangerous situations for humanitarian workers, should not be penalised.

“The dire needs of the desperate populations they serve must be met.”

He said that of the 12 employees accused of taking part in the attack, nine had been immediately sacked, one was confirmed dead and two others were still being identified. He said they would be held accountable, including through criminal prosecution.

The secretary-general did not elaborate on the nature of the investigation that had taken place.

UNRWA commissioner-general Philippe Lazzarini said he was shocked by the decisions to suspend funding as “famine looms” in Gaza, where nearly four months of relentless Israeli military action has killed more than 26,000 people and devastated the territory.

More than two million of Gaza’s 2.3 million people depend on the UNRWA for “sheer survival,” including food and shelter, Mr Lazzarini said, warning that this lifeline could “collapse any time now.”

Palestine Liberation Organisation secretary-general Hussein al-Sheikh posted on the X social media site urging countries to “immediately reverse their decision.”

Former UNRWA spokesman Chris Gunness described the allegation against staff of the agency as a “co-ordinated political attack.” 

He told Al Jazeera: “The Israelis have seen they cannot win the war on Gaza unless UNRWA is disbanded. So what clearer signal do you want?”