GENEVA (Reuters) – The United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees said on Friday it had resumed services in the West Bank after a months-long strike that affected thousands of people.
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) said its teams across the West Bank were preparing the agency’s facilities to resume regular operations as soon as possible this week. next. He said resuming education and health services was his priority.
“As soon as preparations are complete, UNRWA facilities will be open for services, some as early as tomorrow,” he said in a statement.
Established in 1949 following the first Arab-Israeli war, the agency provides public services including schools, primary health care and humanitarian aid in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon.
In January, UNRWA appealed for $1.6 billion in funding after its head warned it was struggling to fulfill its mandate due to soaring costs and the decrease in resources.
Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner-general of UNRWA, said last month that contributions to the agency are expected to drop significantly this year.
(Reporting by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; editing by Jonathan Oatis)