“But also some pride, because in the last two years, I have seen how our staff… have been extraordinarily committed to trying to alleviate the suffering of several of their own communities.”.
Airstrikes against Gaza continue. (archive)
After October 7
In addition to being the face of an organization constantly berated and accused online of collaborating with Hamas fighters in Gaza, the 62-year-old Swiss national has seen the disastrous impact of the Israeli war on the enclave’s population and its agency, brought on by the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in Israel in October 2023.
A high-level UN investigation into allegations against UNRWA found that of 19 staff members accused of involvement in the terrorist attacks, one case was found to lack supporting evidence and nine others lacked sufficient evidence to indicate their involvement.
In the remaining nine cases, evidence indicated that UNRWA staff may have been involved in the October 7 attacks, at which time the agency announced they would be dismissed.
Today, the misery and death throughout the Gaza Strip continues, and one encounter in Gaza that occurred at the beginning of the conflict is particularly difficult to forget, despite the many years Lazzarini worked in conflict situations around the world, from Angola to Iraq and from Somalia to South Sudan.
Tormented by hunger with human eyes
“She was a young woman I met in Rafah four weeks after the war and I already saw her with empty eyes asking, in fact, for a sip of water, a loaf of bread, in the school where she used to be a student. So, the school (which) should be a place of joy and education became a place of misery and refuge for these young girls. And I have to say that this has haunted me.”
And although there is a ceasefire in Gaza today between Hamas and Israel fighters, “in name only”he insists, and people continue to die because they do not know where the shifting border is between them and the Israeli army.
“It’s nothing but misery,” he continues. “We could have reversed the growing tide of hunger in Gaza, but nothing more. People still live among the rubble.They continue to wait for hours to get drinking water. “They are fighting and fighting diseases.”
Children wait to be served a hot meal in a community kitchen in Gaza.
No real alternative
Amid such suffering, Lazzarini rejects suggestions that another body could take UNRWA’s place. “There is no alternative in Gaza,” he insists. “UNRWA is the only organization that has the manpower, expertise and community trust when it comes to public health and education services.. There are no other NGOs or UN organizations. But we also know that the Palestinian Authority is not prepared to take over these services.”
Beyond the attacks on UNRWA staff and hundreds of the agency’s buildings in Gaza, its ability to provide key services in Gaza and beyond has been affected. severely limited by lack of financial support from the international community to match the three-year extension of his mandate approved by the UN General Assembly last December.
Running on empty
Despite austerity measures – including reduced services and a 20 per cent pay cut for most local staff – Mr Lazzarini’s warning to the President of the General Assembly that UNRWA “may soon cease to be viable” without cash remains. But political support is also invaluable, and not just for the survival of his agency, he explains.
“The attacks on UNRWA are no exception, they cannot be addressed in isolation. If we tolerate them for an agency like ours, others will follow in their footsteps. And that is exactly what happened in Gaza: UN agencies have been accused of being infiltrated by Hamas to justify actions against them.…And now we hear the exact same narrative, We see the same pattern being implemented in Lebanon..”
UNRWA teams in Gaza City continue to provide medical services.
Israel’s “silent war” in the West Bank
Far from Gaza, the dire situation of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, who face increasing attacks by Israeli settlers, has also highlighted the “silent war” taking place there “with total impunity,” Lazzarini continues.
In January, Israeli bulldozers entered the UNRWA headquarters in East Jerusalem and proceeded to demolish buildings there, while an Israeli flag was raised atop the UN complex, a move strongly condemned as a violation of international law by the global organization.
“When we talk about respect for international law, we have seen that this blatant disdain and contempt – the fact that everything was carried out without any respect for the rules of war – It has also now allowed the extension of a conflict to Iran without justification to start a war of such large scale that it impacts the entire region.”says the head of UNRWA.
Families are fleeing their homes in the West Bank due to the current escalation of violence. (archive)
‘Extreme pressure’
Despite the global turmoil gripping the world, back in Geneva, Lazzarini seems relaxed. You could easily be mistaken for a visitor with your waxed coat, suede shoes, jacket and tie, but clothes are perhaps the last thing on your mind.
Readily admitting that he has faced “extreme pressure” from attacks against himself and UNRWA over the past two years, the UN’s top diplomat cites the support of his family as one of the main reasons he has been able to continue working.
“I haven’t been around for the last two years,” he says, adding determinedly that once he leaves UNRWA, his plans include catching up “to get back” his wife and children, as well as writing about his experiences leading a UN agency whose future remains at the mercy of geopolitics.