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UN agency for Palestinian refugees faces funding crisis

The head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees said Tuesday it was unable to pay its 28,000 employees on time this month because of a major funding crisis, warning of potential cuts in vital services to millions of people amid a global pandemic.

UNRWA runs schools, clinics and food distribution programs for millions of registered Palestinian refugees across the Middle East, mainly the descendants of Palestinians who fled or were driven out of what is now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding its creation.

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The 5.7 million refugees mostly live in camps that have been transformed into built-up but often impoverished residential areas in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, east Jerusalem and Gaza, as well as Jordan, Syria and Lebanon.

UNRWA head Philippe Lazzarini told reporters in Jordan that the resumption of US support for the agency this year — which had been halted by the Trump administration — was offset by a reduction in funding by other donors.

The agency also went through a management crisis in 2019, when its previous head resigned amid allegations of sexual misconduct, nepotism and other abuses of authority at the agency.

Staff went on strike Monday after being informed last week that salaries would be delayed, but halted the action following mediation, Lazzarini said.

“If UNRWA health services are compromised in the middle of a global pandemic, COVID-19 vaccination rollout will come to an end. Maternal and childcare will stop, half a million girls and boys not knowing if they can continue learning, and over two million of the poorest Palestinian refugees will not get cash and food assistance,” he said.

“The humanitarian needs of Palestinian refugees keep increasing while funding to the agency has stagnated since 2013.”

Lazzarini said the agency raised enough donations at a recent conference in Brussels to cover up to 48 percent of its budget in 2022 and 2023. It also generated $60 million toward a $100 million shortfall until the end of the year to keep services running.

“I’m still not yet in a position to say when the November salaries will be paid,” he said.

Critics of UNRWA, including Israel, accuse it of perpetuating the 73-year refugee crisis and say host nations should shoulder the burden of absorbing them.

The Palestinians say the refugees and their descendants have a “right of return” to their homes in what is now Israel, a position supported by host countries. Israel rejects that, noting that if such a right were fully implemented it would leave the country with a Palestinian majority.

Read more: UN agency for Palestinian refugees has urgent budget crisis

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Pakistan military raids suspected former Taliban stronghold, kills three militants


Pakistani troops raided a suspected militant hideout in a former Pakistani Taliban stronghold near the border with Afghanistan, triggering a shootout that killed three militants, the military said Tuesday.
A militant commander was among those killed in the shootout late on Monday in Khyber, a district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, according to a military statement.
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The military did not provide any additional details, saying only the targeted militants had attacked Pakistani troops in the past.
The Pakistani Taliban, also known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan or TTP , are a separate group but allied with the Afghan Taliban, who two years ago seized Afghanistan as US and NATO troops were in the final stages of their pullout from the country after 20 years of war.
The Taliban takeover of Afghanistan has emboldened the Pakistani Taliban, who have stepped up attacks against police and troops.
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West’s failure to back Ukraine’s tactics risks handing Putin major advantage: Analyst


The West needs to fully support Ukraine’s battle strategies against Russia in the current counter-offensive and the ones to come next, because to do otherwise would hand Russia the gift of valuable time to regroup its forces, said an analyst at the Washington-based think tank Institute of Study of War (ISW).

“Ukrainian forces have adapted. Ukraine’s military decision-making is sound. Now is not the time for Western doubt but for the West to embrace Ukraine’s way of war and commit to sustaining Ukraine’s initiative on the battlefield,” wrote Nataliya Bugayova, non-resident Russia Fellow at ISW.

She highlighted that Ukraine recognized the realities of Russian defenses much faster than Western policymakers, who were expecting a rapid Ukrainian breakthrough.

Bugayova stressed that the US should wholeheartedly embrace its collaboration with a capable ally who takes the lead – Ukraine. In many instances, the US has been accustomed to working with partners who depend on it for leadership, whether it's the proxy forces it has trained or allies relying on its security assistance. Yet, in the case of Ukraine, the US finds itself in a partnership where Ukraine is leading on the frontlines. They possess an in-depth understanding of their operational environment, their adversaries, as well as their own strengths and weaknesses. Ukrainians have consistently demonstrated their grasp of the complexities of this conflict and their ability to adapt. Perhaps most crucially, Ukraine's unwavering determination to continue the fight remains undiminished.

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“Now is not the time for Western doubt. The West must reinforce its military and diplomatic commitments and lean in to help sustain Ukraine’s battlefield momentum. Ukraine is still facing an existential challenge from Russia, which requires Western aid to militarily defeat. Leaning in means embracing Ukraine’s campaign design. It means ensuring that the Western training of Ukrainian troops is done in conditions in which Ukraine fights at its best,” she wrote.

She added: “The West should also help shape strategic communications to set proper expectations around Ukraine’s progress. Ukraine can win this war militarily, but it will take more than one counteroffensive operation. It will take as many campaigns as it takes for Ukraine to liberate its territory and its people.”

“The West should be prepared to support them all because the fundamentals shaping this conflict have not changed: Ukraine can win this war, Russia can only be defeated on the battlefield, and what is at stake includes Ukraine’s existence and vital US interests.”

Bugayova wrote that the current objective of the Kremlin is obstruct and hinder Western and Ukrainian decision-making processes, as this stands as one of the few avenues through which Russian President Vladimir Putin can further his goals. Delays in Western decision-making, especially when it leads to sluggish deliveries of military aid, can offer Russia a respite from pressure. Granting Russia such respite, whether at the operational level or the strategic level, has proven to be disastrous.

She further elaborated that with additional time on their side, Russia has the opportunity to regroup and launch further attacks. However, Russia's Achilles' heel remains its incapacity to swiftly adapt when confronted with relentless pressure or a series of setbacks. Under sustained, unyielding pressure, the Russian forces are likely to begin to weaken. This is the desired outcome of Ukraine's present counteroffensive strategy, and it can only be realized if the West embraces Ukraine's approach to warfare for both the current phase and the future.

“Russia’s Achilles heel remains its inability to rapidly pivot when faced with relentless pressure or consecutive setbacks. Faced with constant pressure over time with no relief, the Russians will likely start to crack. This is the effect Ukraine’s current counteroffensive strategy is seeking to achieve, and it can only be realized if the West embraces Ukraine’s way of war for this phase of the counteroffensive and beyond,” she wrote.

Ukraine’s successes on the battlefronts

“Ukraine maintains the battlefield initiative and its forces are advancing in Zaporizhia Oblast and near Bakhmut. Ukraine continues to liberate its territory and people and is slowly but steadily breaking through an incredibly formidable Russian prepared defense — and the Russian forces are unable to stop the advance, which is now moving in two directions,” Bugayova wrote.

She added that Ukraine's military strategy has achieved notable victories against Russian forces. With backing from Western allies, Ukrainian troops have consistently thwarted Russian goals in various regions, including Kyiv, Kharkiv, Kharkiv Oblast, Kherson, and increasingly, in the southern part of the country. She stressed that Ukraine's efforts have prevented Russian forces from gaining complete control of the skies, while also challenging their naval dominance. This persistent resistance is gradually rendering the Russian military's presence in Crimea less sustainable, a development that was once considered improbable by many observers.

“Ukraine’s decision to keep pressure on Russian forces throughout the entire frontline instead of focusing all of Ukraine’s combat power on one line of attack in the direction of Melitopol, which some Western advisors preferred, was a good adaptation. Ukraine’s decision to hold and conduct counterattacks in Bakhmut allowed it to pin down a substantial portion of the combat power of Russia’s relatively elite airborne (VDV) forces and deny the creation of a strategic Russian reserve. The recent Ukrainian advances in Zaporizhia Oblast are likely forcing the Russians to laterally redeploy their units away from around Bakhmut, where Ukrainian forces are advancing too,” the Russia Fellow wrote.

Black Sea tactics

Bugayova highlighted Ukraine’s “asymmetrical tactics” in the Black Sea which she said are preventing the Black Sea Fleet from operating freely, “forcing Russia to reposition naval assets, and increasingly challenging Russian forces in Crimea — all operational developments of strategic significance.”

This is in light of Ukraine’s missile attack on the headquarters of Russia's Black Sea navy in the Crimean port of occupied Sevastopol on Saturday. The Special Operations Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said on Monday that the strike killed 34 Russian officers, including the commander of the Russian Black Sea Fleet.

The Ukrainian Navy said on Tuesday that the Russians will face challenges in controlling their troops deployed in the Black Sea area after the Ukrainian strike on the headquarters of the Russian Black Sea Fleet killed their commander.

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China says it has not been notified about North Korea’s border reopening


China has not been notified through diplomatic channels about any re-opening of North Korea’s borders, a spokesperson at the Chinese foreign ministry said on Tuesday.

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On Monday, China’s national broadcaster CCTV reported that North Korea had allowed foreigners to enter, and that visitors would be subject to a two-day quarantine upon arrival.
North Korea has largely closed its international borders since early 2020 due to COVID-19.

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