UNRWA employees strike in Gaza to protest recruitment policy

By Nour Abu Aisha

GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) - Staffers of the UN refugee agency UNRWA staged a general strike in the Gaza Strip on Sunday to protest the agency’s lack of response to demands for recruitment of new employees.

“All UNRWA facilities went on a general strike,” Azmi Radwan, head of the labor sector in the UNRWA’s Arab Employees Union, said in a statement.

He said the response to the strike was “large” among employees.

For his part, UNRWA spokesman Adnan Abu Hasna refused to specify the UN agency’s position on the strike.

A meeting was held on Thursday between UNRWA and its local employees in Gaza to discuss their demands.

"There has been no positive progress regarding our demands, except for some minor responses,” the Arab Employees Union said in a statement.

The statement said only 200 teachers were appointed out of 1,500 needed for UNRWA-run schools.

On Friday, the committees representing Palestinian refugees in Gaza called on the UNRWA to halt its downsizing plans.

"We call on the UNRWA administration to abide by previous agreements, improve the conditions of employees, and open the doors for recruitment of hundreds of graduates," the committees said in a statement.

For years, the UNRWA has been suffering from major financial crises, reflecting a decline in its ability to provide services to Palestinian refugees.

*Ikram Kouachi contributed to this report