(Reuters) – Germany has decided to release 71 million euros ($75.80 million) in aid as part of an ongoing review of its support for Palestinians, and has pledged an additional 20 million euros in new funding, the development ministry said on Tuesday.
Germany responded to Hamas militants’ bloody attack on Israel on Oct. 7 by temporarily suspending its development aid to the Palestinian Territories pending review.
“Due to the fragile situation in the region, the review has not yet been fully completed,” a statement from the ministry said.
However, it said the review has focused on continuing support for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), given the needs of people in the Gaza Strip and the increasingly unstable situation in neighbouring countries.
The total sum of 91 million euros will go towards providing basic services for displaced people in the Gaza Strip and assistance for Palestinian refugees in Jordan.
Israel’s campaign to annihilate the Hamas Islamists who launched the attack has devastated the enclave.
The UNRWA activities funded by Germany will focus on the permanent provision of drinking water as well as hygiene and sanitation in emergency shelters for internally displaced people in Gaza, the ministry said.
($1 = 0.9367 euros)
(Reporting by Linda Pasquini, Editing by Rachel More)
