30 January 2009
Obama Provides Emergency Funds for Gaza Relief
Funds go to U.N. relief agencies and Red Cross
Washington — President Obama authorized the use of $20.3 million in emergency funding for immediate humanitarian assistance to Palestinian refugees and conflict victims in the Gaza Strip, the U.S. State Department said.
The announcement follows remarks by U.S. Middle East special envoy George Mitchell, who said, “President Obama has expressed the deep concern of the United States about the loss of Palestinian life and the humanitarian needs in Gaza” at a briefing in Ramallah in the West Bank on January 29.
Mitchell is on a mission to the region to show American support for the Arab-Israeli peace process, and to consolidate a sustainable and durable cease-fire in Gaza. He met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and other senior Palestinian officials in Ramallah and Jerusalem January 29.
Mitchell met with U.N. relief director John Ging at a U.N. warehouse in Jerusalem January 30.
“U.S. government support for humanitarian assistance to Palestinian refugees and conflict victims now totals nearly $120 million in [fiscal year] 2009, including nearly $60 million in Gaza,” the State Department announcement said.
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon made an urgent appeal for $613 million January 29 to cover the immediate recovery needs of the people in Gaza for the next six to nine months. He said a formal appeal will be announced February 2 in Geneva at the U.N. Mission.
Ban said, “Help is urgently needed, including food, clean water, shelter, medicine and the restoration of basic services.
“When I saw the people in Gaza, the destruction and severity of the challenges were beyond description.”
U.S. ASSISTANCE TO THREE AGENCIES
Of the $20.3 million in new emergency funds, $13.5 million will go to the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), $6 million to the International Committee of the Red Cross and $800,000 to the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. These agencies will distribute emergency food assistance, provide medical assistance and temporary shelter, create temporary employment, and restore access to electricity and drinkable water for people living in the Gaza Strip, the department said. About 1.4 million Palestinians live in Gaza.
“Today's contribution to UNRWA augments the $85 million the United States contributed in December 2008 toward UNRWA's 2009 appeals,” the department said.
UNRWA is the largest provider of humanitarian aid in Gaza, providing 70 percent of the population with emergency food assistance, essential health care and primary education. “We are working to develop a longer-term reconstruction [and] development effort with international partners,” the State Department said.
The relief efforts have begun in earnest following a 22-day conflict between Israeli and Hamas forces. Hamas, a terrorist organization, seized control of the Gaza Strip from the Palestinian Authority in June 2007. The conflict began when Hamas launched dozens of rockets and mortars into southern Israel. Israel responded with an air and ground offensive to halt the attacks.
In addition to the aid announced January 30 by the State Department, the U.S. Agency for International Development has provided more than $3.7 million for emergency assistance to Gaza. “Food, milk powder, blankets, plastic sheeting and other nonfood items have been distributed to beneficiaries, and the distributions are continuing,” the department said.
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