UNRWA briefing to UNGA79 plenary meeting
Statement delivered by H.E. Rein Tammsaar, Permanent Representative of Estonia
6 November 2024, New York
Mr President,
We thank Commissioner General Lazzarini for his sobering briefing. Estonia has been a long-term supporter and donor of UNRW.. We are deeply concerned about the recent measures taken by Israel on UNRWA that would seriously restrict the Agency’s work in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem and Gaza. United Nations agencies and international law must be respected.
There is no feasible alternative to UNRWA’s life-saving work, especially during the current deepening humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Therefore it is essential that UNRWA can continue to carry out its mandate. This is why we have joined the „shared commitments“ initiated by Kuwait, Jordan and Slovenia.
We welcome UNRWA’s swift and comprehensive action to address the very serious allegations against some of its staff members. Estonia will continue to closely monitor the implementation of the so-called ’Colonna report’ to ensure the Agency’s neutrality.