UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 30 (Sputnik) - The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) for Palestine Refugees in the Near East may run out of money past February, spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said on Monday.

"Right now, I think past February looks like they will run out of money," Dujarric told a briefing.

UNRWA has 13,000 staff who work for us who serve over 2 million people in Gaza, he added.

On Friday, UNRWA head Philippe Lazzarini said that Israel shared with UNRWA data on the alleged involvement of some of the agency’s staff members in the Hamas attack, and promised to hold accountable anyone who was implicated in acts of terrorism. The United States, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Italy, Canada and some other countries swiftly responded by suspending funding for UNRWA.

On October 7, Palestinian movement Hamas launched a large-scale rocket attack against Israel from the Gaza Strip while its fighters breached the border, attacking both civilian neighborhoods and military bases. As a result, over 1,200 people in Israel were killed and some 240 others abducted. Israel launched retaliatory strikes, ordered a complete blockade of Gaza, and started a ground incursion into the Palestinian enclave with the declared goal of eliminating Hamas fighters and rescuing the hostages. Over 26,400 people have been killed so far in the Gaza Strip, local authorities said.

On November 24, Qatar mediated a deal between Israel and Hamas on a temporary truce and the exchange of some of the prisoners and hostages, as well as the delivery of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip. The ceasefire was extended several times and expired on December 1. More than 100 hostages are still believed to be held by Hamas in Gaza.

Photo from AFP