The aid is part of the UAE pledge at Kuwait 2nd donors conference on Syria The relief targets 361,300 victims, representing 92,200 displaced Palestinian families inside Syria
H.E. Sheikha Lubna Bint Khalid Al Qasimi, Minister of International Cooperation & Development and Head of the National Committee for the Coordination of Foreign Aid, said that the UAE leadership deals with the issue of Palestinian refugees as part of a historical commitment towards the Palestinian issue, with all its dimensions and roots. The UAE historical role in giving support and assistance to our Palestinian brothers is part of the UAE's humanitarian commitments and long term attitudes in supporting Arab brothers and all victims of humanitarian crises worldwide, including the Syrian crisis, she added.
The statements came while H.E. was signing a Cooperation Agreement whereby the UAE grants the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) the sum of USD 15 million (AED 55 millions) to secure food assistance to Palestinian refugees inside Syria, victimized by the Syrian crisis.
H.E. Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi extended utmost appreciation to H.H. Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE President, for his continuous directives to allocate all possible assistance and support to our brothers the Palestinian refugees in Syria. She also expressed appreciation for the similar directives of H.H. Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President, Prime Minister and ruler of Dubai and the support and follow-up of H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces as well as the close supervision of H.H. Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs.
"There is an urgent need to provide support and assistance to Palestinian refugees living in camps in Syria as there are great difficulties that face the delivery of humanitarian aid to them due to prevailing tensions, conflicts and threats that hinder the efforts of relief teams and limit their access. This necessitates cooperation between the UAE and the UN agencies, especially the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) to ensure that the basics of living, especially food, are continuously secured.
H.E. the Minister commended the continuous directives of H.H. Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE President, to provide support to Palestinian refugees wherever they are. She stressed that this generous policy has always been adopted since the foundation of the UAE federation. Since then assistance caravans to Palestinian brothers inside Palestine and also in hosting countries never stopped. Schools, hospitals, roads and complete cities were built by the UAE, besides health and food assistance.
This new amount is part of the second commitment taken by the UAE during the Kuwait Second International Pledging Conference for Syria early 2014. The overall pledge was AED 220 million. Directives from the UAE's wise leadership were issued to allocate the whole amount for the Syrian refugees to alleviate the suffering of our brotherly Syrians and as a response to the Syrian Humanitarian Assistance Response Plan (SHARP) for the benefit of "people inside Syria" and the UN Syria Regional Response Plan for Syrian refugees in "the neighboring countries," through the UN organizations and humanitarian programs.
The Agreement was signed also by Mr. Pierre Krähenbühl, the UNRWA’s Commissioner-General who commented on this event by saying: This $15 million donation from UAE through MICAD is extremely welcome, and comes as a timely reminder of the continued war in Syria.
UNRWA continues to operate wherever Palestine refugees are in need, and the situation for those Palestine refugees in Syria remains as desperate as ever The Agreement will allow the UAE to provide the UNRWA with AED 55 million for the benefit of 361,300 Palestinian victims, representing 92,200 displaced Palestinian families inside Syria. The signing ceremony was attended by H.E. Mohamed Saif Al Suwaidi, the Director General of Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD) and H.E. Hazza Mohamed Al Qahtani, MICAD's Undersecretary.
