Philippe Lazzarini, Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), confirmed on Wednesday 1 September, that the UN agency had revised the textbooks used in its schools following allegations of antisemitic content (see EUROPE 12577/28).
Speaking to MEPs on the European Parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs, he said he took the allegations seriously and that the agency had examined the books and had taken action when such allegations were confirmed. According to Mr Lazzarini, the agency has reviewed 150 textbooks and is continuing to do so. “We are aware that we operate in an environment where there is no such thing as zero risk, but we have zero tolerance for hate speech, including Antisemitism”, he stressed.
The Secretary General explained that UNRWA was the only UN agency with a neutrality officer. “We have made significant efforts to promote neutrality among our staff and the obligations that go with it. We review all the manuals for every passage we identify that does not correspond to UN values”, he explained. He said that he had identified several problems, including gender perception and incitement to violence, discrimination and intolerance.
Mr Lazzarini recalled that the UNRWA used textbooks from the Palestinian refugees’ host countries, so that they could return to the national school system at the end of secondary school, but that the agency controlled these books.
The agency is “preparing the future citizens of the region”, but for this to happen, it must have the necessary funds, the secretary general added.
“To support the refugees, so that they can reach their potential, we need a stronger and more predictable UNRWA, it needs sufficient and predictable funding”, he said. Recalling that in 2020 the agency had narrowly avoided financial collapse, he said that despite the return of the US financial contribution, the situation remained uncertain and the budget was still $100 million short.
“The funding model is not sustainable”, he explained. He therefore said he hoped that the international conference to be convened in the coming months by Sweden and Jordan would be an opportunity “to move away from short-term management”, adding that predictability was needed. “The UNRWA is weakened, the needs cannot be met, the Palestinian refugees feel left out by the international community”, he said. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)