Sweden will give UNRWA half of the $57 million funding it promised for this year, with more to come, after the agency agreed to increased transparency and stricter controls.

Israel had accused 12 of UNRWA’s thousands of employees of participating in the October 7 Hamas attacks that killed 1200 people and took about 250 others hostage, leading more than a dozen donor countries to suspend funding.

Loading

A final report into the allegations by former French foreign minister Catherine Colonna is expected to be published next month.

Even before the October 7 attacks, the Israeli government and pro-Israel groups had accused UNRWA of promoting extremism in the Palestinian territories and using an inflated definition of who counts as a Palestinian refugee.

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton last month called for Albanese to sack Wong if the government resumes funding UNRWA, saying taxpayer money should not go to a UN agency that is “affiliated or associated with a terrorist organisation”.

Sweden’s reversal on UNWRA funding came as a ship bearing tonnes of humanitarian aid was preparing to leave Cyprus for Gaza after international donors launched a sea corridor to supply the besieged territory facing widespread hunger after five months of war.

Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides told reporters on Sunday (AEDT) that the ship would depart “within the next 24 hours”. World Central Kitchen founder José Andrés said all necessary permits, including from Israel, had been secured, and circumstances delaying departure were primarily weather-related.

The Hamas-run Gaza health ministry said at least 30,878 Palestinians have been killed since the war began. It doesn’t differentiate between civilians and combatants in its tallies but says women and children make up two-thirds of the dead.

The opening of the sea delivery corridor, along with the airdrops, showed increasing frustration with Gaza’s humanitarian crisis and a new willingness to work around Israeli restrictions. The sea corridor is backed by the EU together with the United States, the United Arab Emirates and other involved countries. The European Commission has said that UN agencies and the Red Cross will also play a role.

Meanwhile, efforts to reach a ceasefire before Ramadan appeared stalled. Hamas said on Thursday that its delegation had left Cairo until next week.

Loading

International mediators had hoped to alleviate some of the immediate crisis with a six-week ceasefire, which would have seen Hamas release some of the Israeli hostages it’s holding, Israel release some Palestinian prisoners and aid groups be given access to a major influx of assistance into Gaza.

Palestinian militants are believed to be holding about 100 hostages and the remains of 30 others captured during the October 7 attack. Several dozen hostages were freed in a weeklong November truce.

AP, Reuters