UNRWA-Newsletter

UNRWA update as of 8 April 2026

“Today, the region is plunging deeper into turmoil. The need for UNRWA’s services and the principled assistance of the United Nations has never been more evident. The Agency will continue to evolve, adapt and reform, but its foundation remains unchanged: dedicated, professional staff who uphold the values of the UN in service of those in need.”

Outgoing Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini wrote in a message to UNRWA staff, March 31

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Humanitarian Space is Shrinking: Impacts on the Whole Multilateral System

Today, the rules‑based order anchored in the United Nations and supported by international institutions and the work of INGOs is under immense strain, and the case of UNRWA exemplifies the consequences.

In an op-ed in the Guardian, UNRWA’s outgoing Commissioner General wrote: “It is incomprehensible that a UN entity has been allowed to be crushed as UNRWA has, in violation of international law, with total impunity, and with staff and Palestinian communities paying an unacceptable price. […] The abject failure to muster an effective multilateral and international law-based response in Gaza enabled a war outside international legal boundaries – one that is now spreading across and beyond the Middle East. This failure has normalised disdain for the rules-based international order.”

Read more in the outgoing Commissioner-General’s op-ed in the Guardian, and in his message to UNWRA staff.

#UNRWAworks: Update on Lebanon, Gaza, and West Bank

While escalating violence in the region deepens humanitarian needs, UNRWA continues to provide services throughout the region, remaining a pillar of stability.

In Lebanon, UNRWA initiated its emergency response immediately following the latest escalation. Since then, the Agency has opened emergency shelters and continues to deliver vital services, including emergency healthcare, WASH support, and emergency education. UNRWA shelters accommodate Palestinians, Syrians, and Lebanese alike. In March, UNRWA launched an emergency appeal for US$12.3 million to sustain this critical response amid a worsening situation in which more than one million people have already been displaced.

In Gaza, despite a fragile ceasefire, UNRWA continues to monitor the movement of displaced persons and displacement sites. An estimated 67,000 displaced people are currently living in more than 80 collective emergency shelters managed by the Agency. Around 11,000 Palestinian UNRWA personnel remain on the ground, delivering essential services and assistance to the population. The Agency continues to provide core services to the whole Gaza population such as health, education or WASH, including screening more than 5,000 children for malnutrition in late February, offering in-person learning activities to over 60,000 children, and reaching more than 280,000 children through digital learning tools. In 2025 alone, UNRWA provided 970,000 cubic metres of drinking and domestic water and collected and safely disposed of 70,000 tonnes of solid waste, benefiting an estimated 1.7 million people.

In the West Bank, the situation is worsening at immense speed and scale. Between 7 October 2023 and 28 March 2026, OCHA reports that 1,073 Palestinians, among them at least 233 children, have been killed in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Of these, 27 deaths have been recorded since the start of 2026.  UNRWA remains a key actor, with more than 4,000 staff continuing to deliver essential state-like services, like health, education, or protection, to Palestine refugees. As the second‑largest employer and service provider in the oPt, UNRWA remains a key stabilising presence. Its emergency response in the northern West Bank is vital to addressing the needs of more than 30,000 people displaced from the Tulkarem, Jenin, and Nur Shams refugee camps, which have been emptied following Israeli military operations.

See the UNRWA Situation Reports for the most recent and updated information on the situation in Lebanon and the oPt.

Philippe Lazzarini makes final press conference as Commissioner General of UNRWA:

On his final day as UNRWA Commissioner-General, Philippe Lazzarini held a press conference in Geneva, where he reflected on UNRWA’s crucial role in the region and called for an independent investigation into the killing of nearly 400 UNRWA staff in Gaza, among others. He also warned against what he described as growing impunity surrounding Israel’s actions, first displayed in Gaza and now spreading into Lebanon. Lazzarini urged for support to UNRWA as the Agency faces mounting challenges while the need for its services keep growing.

Mr. Lazzarini ended his tenure on April 1. UNRWA’s new OiC Commissioner-General, Christian Saunders, witnessed first-hand on his first day how UNRWA works in one of its emergency shelters in Lebanon (watch here a video on the visit).

Media

• The Guardian – Israel has crushed Unrwa in Gaza – and the rest of the world has done nothing – Opinion piece by departing Commissioner General of UNRWA Philippe Lazzarini (English)
• Le Monde – Interview with departing Commissioner General of UNRWA Philippe Lazzarini (English)
• Reuters – Article on the letter from UNRWA departing Commissioner General to the President of the UN General Assembly (English)

RFI – Article on the outgoing Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini’s call for an independent investigation into the deaths of UNRWA staff in Gaza (English)

As always, our team remains at your disposal for any questions or comments.Kind regards,

UNRWA | Representative Office for Europe