THE HAGUE - A large group of former Dutch Ministers and ambassadors have urged the Cabinet to resume the Dutch contribution to UNRWA, the main UN aid organization in Gaza. “Any reforms can take place later, but action is required now,” they wrote in an open letter to the Cabinet on Monday, the Volkskrant reports.
The Netherlands suspended its contribution to UNRWA early this year after reports that UN employees may have been involved in Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7. The investigation into those allegations is still ongoing, and the Dutch government is awaiting the results. Many other major donors who suspended aid have since resumed it, including the European Union.
The former ambassadors and Ministers think the government has a duty to restore the relationship with the UNRWA now that food and medicine are entering Gaza for the first time in months, but their distribution is encountering problems. “UNRWA is the only organization that has the infrastructure to enable this distribution quickly and efficiently. In order to alleviate the suffering of the population - such as famine - this organization can no longer be boycotted,” they wrote.
The signatories include dozens of former ambassadors and diplomats, as well as former Ministers Hedy d'Ancona (PvdA), Bert Koenders (PvdA), Tineke Netelenbos (PvdA), Jan Pronk (PvdA), Bram Stemerdink (PvdA), Bert de Vries (CDA), and Laurens-Jan Brinkhorst (D66).
On October 7, Hamas committed several terrorist attacks in Israel, killing around 1,139 people. Israel immediately responded with military strikes on the Gaza Strip and has been incessantly bombing the area ever since. In recent days, Israel has been intensifying ground operations in the south of the besieged enclave as well as committing attacks throughout the Gaza Strip, Al Jazeera reported.
As of 2:00 p.m. on April 14, Israeli attacks have killed at least 33,729 people in the Gaza Strip, including over 13,800 children. Over 76,371 people are injured, and more than 8,000 are missing, according to figures from the Palestinian Ministry of Health. There have also been 465 deaths in the Israel-occupied West Bank, including 118 children.
Over the weekend, Iran fired missiles and drones at Israel, most of which were intercepted by Israel’s air defense systems, according to Al Jazeera. Iran said the attack was in response to Israel’s attack on its embassy in Damascus, Syria, on April 1 and that the “matter can be deemed concluded.” Israel called Iran’s attack “a severe and dangerous escalation.”
Dutch Minister Hanke Bruins Slot of Foreign Affairs has summoned the Iranian ambassador in The Hague “to convey our condemnation regarding the dangerous Iranian attack on Israel last night,” she said on X on Sunday evening.
