UNRWA Must be Supported After Such a Difficult Period, Luxembourg FM tells AWP
(AWP) - Luxembourg’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Deputy Prime Minister, Xavier Bettel, said that it is vital to support the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) given the crucial role it plays for Palestinians.
During a visit to the Jalazone camp for refugees in Ramallah in the West Bank, Bettel told AWP, “I came here for the second time in four months to hold political meetings, but for me it was also important to meet UNRWA workers.”
He added, “They went through a difficult time in a difficult region and difficult situations, and it was important that we come here to support them, and it was important not to give up [on them].”
Bettel welcomed the resumption of many countries’ financial support to UNRWA after a period of hiatus that hindered the agency from performing its duties in helping Palestinian refugees, especially in the Gaza Strip.
Bettel said, “I’ve just heard from other people that they would not know what to do without UNRWA, so we have to realise how important the work of these people is, and it’s important not only for them, but for us, and we have to do what we can do.”
Bettel, who was previously the Prime Minister of Luxembourg, noted that his meetings with Palestinian officials in Ramallah, and previous meetings with Israeli officials in Jerusalem, were aimed at affirming the rights of both peoples to peace.
Bettel visited a school and a medical centre and met with several UNRWA employees during his visit to the Jalazone camp.