UN Secretary General António Guterres has called on member states to close a $100-million cash shortfall at the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).
Despite painful austerity and cost-control measures, the deficit was preventing the agency from meeting its current obligations, Guterres told a donor conference for UNRWA in New York on Tuesday.
"They cannot keep going like this without urgent backing and financial support from member states," he said.
The United Nations established UNRWA in 1949 to help around 700,000 Palestinian refugees. Palestinians who fled or were displaced during the wars of 1948 and 1967, as well as their descendants, are eligible for its services.
According to UNRWA, around 5.9 million people now fall under its mandate, with the number continuing to rise. The agency also operates in Jordan and Lebanon, among other places.
UNRWA has faced allegations that some of its employees were involved in the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in Israel on October 7, 2023. According to Israeli figures, 12 of UNRWA's roughly 13,000 employees in the Gaza Strip were involved in the Islamist-motivated terrorist attack.
Guterres said the agency's situation was becoming increasingly precarious.
"I am appalled by continuing efforts to marginalize and undermine UNRWA. Through disinformation. Smear campaigns. Legislative actions. Operational restrictions. Diplomatic roadblocks. And more," he said.
He said such actions threatened the well-being of millions of Palestinians.
UNRWA said it received around $887 million in pledges and $829 million in contributions in 2025, covering only 27% of its total funding requirement of $3.3 billion.
The United States, previously the agency's most important donor, halted its support in early 2025.
